^ 


A.    .A 


ir- 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


1   TETJI  IVERSIT 


2  3  1938 


BY 


EDWIN  A.  KIRKPATRICK,  B.S.,  M.Pn. 

AUTHOR   OF   "  FUNDAMENTALS    OF  CHILD    STUDY,"   "  GENETIC 

PSYCHOLOGY,"  "THE  INDIVIDUAL  IN  THE  MAKING,"  "USE 

OF  MONEY,"  "  FUNDAMENTALS  OF  SOCIOLOGY,"  ETC. 


GINN  AND  COMPANY 

BOSTON  •  NEW  YORK  •  CHICAGO  •  LONDON 
ATLANTA  •  DALLAS  •  COLUMBUS  •  SAN  FRANCISCO 


COPYRIGHT,  1920,  BY  EDWIN  A.  KIRKPATRICK 

ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED 

120.4 


fltftetneum 


GINN  AND  COMPANY-  PRO- 
PRIETORS •  BOSTON  •  U.S.A. 


Library 


PREFACE 

Science  embodies  universal  truths.  Literature  expresses 
truth  as  seen  or  exemplified  by  individuals.  Neither  liter- 
ature nor  the  science  of  psychology  alone  can  adequately 
deal  with  the  subject  of  imagination.  Psychology  seeks 

i     to  present  what  is  true  of  all  minds,  but  in  no  type  of 

1     mental  activity  is  there  greater  individuality  than  in  the 

)      exercise  of  the  imagination. 

v  i  The  writer,  in  his  many  years  of  teaching  psychology, 
has  enjoyed  this  subject  because  tests  given  students  and 
their  reports  of  introspective  studies  show  that  the  same 
laws  govern  all  minds,  though  they  are  partly  disguised 

,     by  an  infinite  variety  of  image  combinations.    No  topic 

reveals  to  students  more  clearly  their  mental  processes 

1  and  at  the  same  time  shows  them  that  other  persons 

^  ,  arrive  at  the  same  results  by  different  routes.  It  gives 
the  author  satisfaction,  therefore,  to  share  with  a  larger 
group  than  that  comprising  his  own  students  the  pleas- 
ure and  advantage  to  be  derived  from  a  study  of  so  in- 
teresting a  subject.  He  hopes  that  this  little  book  will 
introduce  many  to  a  study  of  the  facts  in  the  realm  of 
imagination  as  exemplified  in  their  own  minds  and  in 
the  minds  of  others,  especially  children,  and  as  revealed 
in  play,  science,  art,  and  literature.  With  this  end  in 
view,  scientific  technicalities  and  exhaustive  treatment 
have  intentionally  been  avoided. 

Although  the  book  may  be  studied  by  individuals  suc- 
cessfully, it  will  prove  much  more  interesting  and  valuable 

[iii] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

when  used  by  a  group  of  persons  who  report  and  discuss 
individual  observations  and  make  group  experiments.  It 
is  hoped  that  the  manner  of  treatment  and  the  exercises 
at  the  close  of  each  chapter  will  make  the  book  especially 
useful  to  teachers'  reading  circles.  The  references  at  the 
close  of  the  book  may  also  prove  valuable  in  giving  a 
wider,  more  intensive,  and  varied  view  of  the  subject. 

E.  A.  K. 


[iv] 


CONTENTS 

PART   I.   IMAGINATION  AND  RELATED  ACTIVITIES 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 3 

Making  the  absent  present.  Sources  of  the  material  used  in 
imagination.  Free  use  of  images.  Kinds  of  imagination. 
Imagination  as  a  method  of  working.  Illustrations  and 
exercises 

II.  MENTAL  IMAGES 17 

Variety,  number,  and  vividness.  Control  of  images.  Why 
some  images  are  usually  more  prominent  than  others.  Ver- 
bal images.  Exercises  and  illustrations 

•III.  IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 26 

f 

After-images.  Hallucinations.  Suggested  and  suggesting 
images.  Standard  images.  Exercises  and  illustrations 

IV.  MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 35 

Mental  habits.  Associations  of  similarity  and  contrast.  Other 
laws  than  those  of  habit  and  association.  Generic  and  indi- 
vidual images.  Exercises 

) 

V.  IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 48 

Imaging  and  locating  experiences.  Constructive  imagination 
and  memory.  Conflict  of  memory  and  creative  imagination. 
Special  varieties  of  images  as  aids  to  memory.  Exercises 

VI.  FEELING  AND  IMAGINATION 56 

Images  and  sensory  feelings.  Constructive  imagination  and 
emotional  states.  Mood  and  creative  imagination.  Instincts 
and  imagination.  Desire  and  imagination.  Exercises 

VII.  IMAGINATION  AND  DREAMING 63 

Dream  imagery.  Sensation*,  and  dreams.  Recent  experi- 
ences and  dreams.  Wishes  and  dreams.  Exercises 

[V] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

VIII.  REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 69 

Similarity  and  purpose  in  reasoning.  Symbols  and  exact 
reasoning.  Images,  judgment,  and  decision.  Imaging  in 
induction  and  deduction.  Exercises 


PART  II.  THE  IMAGINATIVE  LIFE   OF  CHILDREN 

1 

IX.  FACTORS  INVOLVED  IN  THE  EARLY   DEVELOPMENT 

OF  IMAGINATION 81 

The  beginnings  of  imagination.  Language  and  images. 
Tendency  to  animism.  Imitation  and  imagination.  Remi- 
niscence and  anticipation.  Imagination  and  the  omnipo- 
tence of  childhood.  Exercises 

X.  LATER   DEVELOPMENT    OF    THE    IMAGINATION    AS 

AFFECTED  BY  AGE,  CIRCUMSTANCES,  AND  INDIVID- 
UALITY   90 

The  chief  factors  involved.  Characteristics  of  imagination 
at  different  ages.  Periods  of  imaginative  development. 
Exercises 

XL  THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 102 

Playing  with  images.  Influences  affecting  creative  activity. 
Imaginary  companions.  Exercises 

XII.  CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WORLD 116 

The  period  of  constructive  imagination.  Comparing  and 
constructing.  Truth  and  fancy.  The  imaginary  made  real. 
Individual  construction.  Exercises 

XIII.  THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 125 

The  imagination  of  the  adolescent.  Life  idealized.  Roman- 
tic imagination.  Ambition.  Exercises 

XIV.  EVILS  AND  DANGERS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN      134 

Playful  and  pleasurable  imagining.  Serious  or  purposeful 
imagination.  Imagination  in  relation  to  lying.  Mental  con- 
flict as  a  cause  of  wrongdoing.  How  to  guard  against  the 
dangers  of  imagination.  Literature  and  imaginative  activ- 
ity. Exercises 

[Vi] 


CONTENTS 

PART  III.  SCHOOL  SUBJECTS  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 

XV.  USE  AND  TRAINING  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  SCHOOL     157 

Disciplining  the  imagination.  Stimuli  to  the  imagination. 
Directing  the  imagination.  Mental  conditions  favoring 
imagination.  Exercises 

XVI.  LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 167 

Imagination  involved  in  learning  to  read.  The  thought 
method.  The  symbol  or  phonic  method.  Learning  to 
spell.  Exercises 

XVII.  IMAGINATION  IN  DRAWING  AND  CONSTRUCTING  .     177 

Images  and  drawing.  Models  and  images.  Constructing 
and  imaging.  Designing  and  inventing.  Exercises 

XVIII.  IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 183 

From  concrete  things  to  symbols.  From  auditory  to  vis- 
ual images.  Measurement  and  imaging.  Computing  and 
imaging.  Imagination  and  problem-solving.  Exercises 

XIX.  GEOGRAPHY  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 192 

Geography  as  a  stimulus  to  the  imagination.  Geograph- 
ical language.  Constructive  imagination  and  geography. 
Geographical  imaging  and  reasoning.  Exercises 

XX.  IMAGINATION  IN  HISTORY  AND  LITERATURE   .     .197 

Enlargement  of  the  social  environment  through  imagi- 
nation. Historical  and  literary  ideals.  Dramatics  in  his- 
tory and  literature.  Illustrating  and  writing  as  a  stimulus 
to  the  imagination.  Literary  expression  and  imagination. 
Exercises 

XXI.  IMAGINATION  IN  NATURE  STUDY  AND  SCIENCE  .     204 

Imagination  and  observation.  Artistic  and  poetic  study. 
Practical  nature  study.  Scientific  nature  study.  Exercises 

BIBLIOGRAPHY 209 

[Vii] 


INTRODUCTION 

Imagination  has  been  the  Cinderella  of  the  intellectual 
faculties,  so  far  as  the  attention  and  interest  of  those  who 
are  charged  with  the  care  and  culture  of  the  young  are 
concerned.  Educational  literature  has  been  filled  with 
discussions  of  the  nature,  value,  and  training  of  percep- 
tion, memory,  and  reason  ;  but  imagination  has  always 
been  kept  in  the  background,  —  so  much  so,  in  fact,  that 
most  parents  and  teachers  have  only  very  hazy  notions 
respecting  the  role  which  this  intellectual  process  plays 
in  human  life  and  the  prominence  which  it  should  be 
accorded  in  education.  Nine  out  of  ten  persons  speak 
of  imagination  as  though  it  were  not  a  vital  factor  in 
mental  operations,  —  as  though  it  could  be  ignored  or 
eliminated  without  loss  to  the  efficiency,  stability,  or 
balance  of  the  human  mind. 

It  is  true  that  "  Training  the  Imagination  "  is  a  topic 
sometimes  discussed  at  educational  meetings  ;  but  anyone 
who  has  listened  to  these  discussions  will  readily  bear 
witness  to  the  fact  that  the  majority,  perhaps,  of  educators 
who  appear  to  be  well  informed  on  most  educational  and 
psychological  subjects  find  themselves  at  sea  when  they  at- 
tempt to  distinguish  imagination  from  other  forms  of  mental 
activity,  and  especially  when  they  discuss  the  function  of 
imagination  in  the  various  branches  of  school  instruction 
and  the  part  it  should  play  in  the  educational  program. 

Professor  Kirkpatrick's  book  has  been  prepared  with 
a  view  to  clearing  up  misconceptions  in  the  minds  of 

[ix] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

parents  and  teachers  respecting  the  relation  of  imagina- 
tion to  the  other  intellectual  processes,  the  varieties  of 
imaginative  activity  in  the  adjustments  of  daily  life,  the 
changes  in  the  content  and  form  of  imagination  that 
occur  in  the  course  of  a  child's  development,  individual 
differences  in  the  prominence,  intensity,  and  quality  of 
imagination,  and  the  proper  utilization  of  this  activity  in 
the  work  of  the  school.  The  author  has  treated  his 
theme  as  a  whole  and  in  its  various  subdivisions  in  an 
unusually  concrete  and  lively  manner.  His  generalizations 
are  all  based  on  data  derived  from  the  circumstances  and 
experiences  of  the  daily  life  of  childhood  and  youth  in 
the  city  and  in  the  country,  and  in  homes  with  varying 
ideals  of  training  and  discipline.  Many  persons  have  co- 
operated with  him  in  the  effort  to  discover  how  different 
minds  work  imaginatively  under  varying  conditions  and 
at  different  periods  in  mental  development.  In  this  way 
a  large  amount  of  accurate  and  live  material  has  been 
collected,  and  typical  examples  are  presented  and  inter- 
preted in  this  volume.  It  makes  a  document  of  excep- 
tional interest  and  value  for  students  of  human  nature, 
and  especially  for  anyone  who  acts  as  counselor  for  the 
young  or  who  gives  instruction  on  any  subject  in  the 

school  or  in  the  home. 

M.  V.  O'SHEA 
THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  WISCONSIN 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE 
IN  EDUCATION 

PART  I 
IMAGINATION  AND  RELATED  ACTIVITIES 


\ 


/ 


CHAPTER  I 
PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

Making  the  absent  present.  The  following  will  serve 
as  an  introduction  to  our  subject :  "  He  opened  the  gate, 
saw  the  white  cottage  through  the  trees  and  shrubs, 
caught  the  odor  of  roses  and,  as  he  approached  the  door, 
heard  a  joyful  cry,  saw  the  door  flung  open,  and  felt  her 
arms  about  him."  Is  this  an  account  of  a  man's  experi- 
ence as  he  approached  a  suburban  home,  or  is  it  a  de- 
scription of  what  he  mentally  represented  as  he  sat  in  his 
office  in  the  city,  among  far  different  sights,  sounds,  and 
odors  ?  If  the  latter  is  the  case,  we  have  an  example  of 
imaginative  activity. 

This  power  of  viewing  the  absent  as  though  it  were 
present  is  one  of  the  most  distinctive  characteristics  of 
human  beings.  Animals  have  it  either  not  at  all  or  to 
only  a  slight  degree.  For  the  most  part  they  live  in  the 
present,  while  people  occupy  their  minds  for  hours  at  a 
time  with  the  absent,  the  past,  and  the  future.  An  animal 
is  modified  by  his  past  experiences,  and  on  that  account 
his  future  actions  will  be  different,  but  there  is  little  reason 
for  believing  that  any  animal  becomes  distinctly  conscious 
of  those  past  experiences,  independent  of  the  surround- 
ings in  which  they  occurred,  or  that  he  pictures  far  in 
advance  what  his  actions  are  to  be. 

It  is  because  human  beings  have  this  extraordinary 
power  to  represent  the  absent  that  they  are  able  to  become 

[3] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

familiar  with  objects  and  events  distant  in  space  and  time 
and  are  able  to  use  the  results  of  past  experience  in  rep- 
resenting and  planning  what  they  shall  do  in  the  future. 
The  animal's  mental  experiences  are  determined  by  the 
here  and  now,  the  man's  by  what  has  been  and  may  be. 

A  popular  view  of  imagination  is  that  it  is  concerned 
only  with  the  untrue  and  the  unreal ;  but  this  is  correct 
only  in  the  sense  that  the  reality  and  the  truth  are  not 
manifested  in  stimuli  immediately  present.  Imagination 
may  concern  itself  either  with  what  has  existed  or  may 
exist  in  the  future,  or  it  may  represent  what  never  has 
been  and  perhaps  never  will  be  experienced  by  any  human 
being  in  exactly  the  form  pictured.  In  the  illustration 
given  above,  the  man  may  be  living  again  in  imagination 
an  actual  experience  and  may  represent  nothing  which 
did  not  actually  happen,  or  he  may  be  representing  what 
is  likely  to  occur  when  he  goes  home  at  night.  Again, 
he  may  be  representing  an  experience  that  he  has  never 
had,  among  scenes  that  he  has  never  visited  or  heard 
described.  In  all  these  cases  things  not  present  are  made 
real  in  his  consciousness,  which  is  the  most  distinctive 
characteristic  of  imaginative  activity. 

When  the  image  of  the  scene  is  a  memory  of  what 
actually  happened  there  is  less  freedom  of  representation 
than  when  new  surroundings  and  events  are  mirrored  in 
the  mind.  We  may  say,  then,  that  the  more  completely 
what  is  not  present  to  the  senses  is  made  to  seem  real  in 
consciousness  and  the  freer  this  seeming*  reality  is  from 
any  actual  associated  experience  of  the  moment,  the 
greater  is  the  degree  of  imagination.  The  man  who  pic- 
tures exactly  scenes  that  have  occurred  or  will  occur  is 
using  his  imagination  just  as  truly  as  the  one  who  pictures 

[4] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

the  unreal  and  the  impossible.  The  only  difference  is 
that  in  the  one  case  knowledge  of  the  world  as  it  is  ex- 
ercises a  stronger  controlling  influence  over  the  imagina- 
tive activity  than  in  the  other. 

Sources  of  the  material  used  in  imagination.  However 
free  imagination  may  become,  it  must  begin  with  materials 
supplied  by  real  sense  experiences.  A  man  who  has 
never  had  any  visual  experiences  has  no  material  for 
representing  how  things  actually  look.  If  he  pictures  a 
beautiful  form  it  is  in  terms  of  touch  and  motion  rather 
than  of  light  and  shade,  while  representation  of  color  as 
it  appears  to  the  eye  is  utterly  impossible  to  him.  He 
can  only  conjecture  that  colors  differ,  as  tactile,  auditory, 
or  olfactory  sensations  differ ;  and  when  red  or  yellow  are 
mentioned  he  may  represent  them  as  resembling  one  kind 
or  another  of  the  sensations  with  which  he  is  familiar. 
He  cannot  possibly  experience  in  consciousness  the  sen- 
sation felt  by  normal  people  when  objects  of  those  colors 
are  presented  to  the  eye. 

It  has  often  been  suggested  that  animals  or  beings  on 
other  planets  may  have  senses  entirely  different  from 
those  that  we  possess.  Whether  such  is  the  case  or  not, 
it  is  utterly  impossible  for  us  to  represent  what  those 
senses  might  be  except  in  terms  of  sensations  that  we 
have  experienced.  It  is  true  that  we  may  represent  objects 
entirely  different  from  any  that  we  have  ever  seen  and 
perhaps  from  any  that  have  ever  existed,  but  in  doing 
so  we  must  use  material  derived  from  actual  sensory 
experiences.  We  may  picture  an  animal  or  a  plant  differ- 
ent from  any  that  we  know  or  possibly  combining  the  char- 
acteristics of  plants  and  animals  in  a  way  unknown  to 
science,  but  in  doing  so  we  have  used  material  derived 

[5] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

from  actual  observations.  Our  image  of  an  entirely  new 
creature  is  made  possible  only  by  combining  parts  of  many 
separate  observations  in  an  entirely  new  way. 

Free  use  of  images.  The  material  used  by  the  imagina- 
tion consists  of  images  that  are  like  the  sensations  ex- 
perienced when  the  stimuli  were  present.  When  these 
images  are  arranged  in  exactly  the  same  way  as  their 
originals  were  in  some  experience  or  series  of  experi- 
ences, there  is  little  freedom  of  imagination,  and  the 
process  is  usually  designated  as  memory  or  reproductive 
imagination.  When,  however,  some  of  the  images  are 
modified  or  transposed  and  when  images  derived  from 
various  experiences  are  combined  into  a  new  unity,  we 
have  a  better  example  of  free  activity  of  the  imagination. 
The  person  who,  when  the  word  "tree"  is  spoken, 
always  pictures  a  particular  tree  standing  amid  certain 
surroundings  has  not  as  great  freedom  of  the  imagina- 
tion, so  far  as  trees  are  concerned,  as  the  one  who  pictures 
the  general  form  of  a  tree  that  can  be  located  anywhere 
and  instantly  become  of  any  size,  species,  or  shape.  An 
active  imagination  not  only  brings  vividly  before  the  mind 
sense  experiences,  in  the  absence  of  the  objects  produc- 
ing them,  but  it  exercises  great  freedom  in  isolating 
sensations  from  their  associates  and  in  making  new 
groupings  of  images.  When  images  can  thus  be  disso- 
ciated and  combined  with  others  there  is  a  high  degree 
of  freedom  as  regards  the  material  that  the  imagination 
may  use.  The  fact  that  the  images  are  thus  free  to  enter 
into  new  combinations  does  not,  however,  give  the 
imagination  complete  liberty  when  a  new  complex  image 
and  perhaps  a  series  of  events  is  to  be  constructed.  In 
making  such  a  construction  it  may  be  easy  to  separate 

[6] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

•. 

the  images  from  their  former  associates,  but  one  may  have 
difficulty  in  combining  them  in  ways  that  differ  greatly 
from  combinations  that  have  previously  been  experienced. 

Kinds  of  imazhLaJJMai.  On  the  basis  of  the  above  facts 
regarding  freedom  of  imagination,  we  may  distinguish 
three  rather  distinct  types  of  imaginative  activity.  These 
are,  first,  reproductive  imagination,  in  which  the  past  is 
presented  to  the  mind  with  the  images  arranged  just  as 
they  were  in  the  original  experience ;  second,  construc- 
twejaagination,  in  which  the  separate  images  are  com- 
bined not  according  to  some  particular  experience  but  in 
accordance  with  their  more  usual  arrangement  or  as 
directed  by  descriptions ;  third,  creative  imagination 
which  the  images  are  freely  arranged  in  accordance  with 
one's  own  feelings  and  purposes. 

The  first  type  of  imagination  is  quite  similar  to  memory 
and  may  be  identical  with  it.  There  may,  however,  be 
this  difference :  In  memory  we  know  that  certain  things 
happened  at  a  particular  time  and  place  and  in  a  certain 
order  or  relation,  while  in  what  is  called  reproductive 
imagination  there  may  be  less  accuracy  as  to  the  order 
and  relation  of  events  but  greater  vividness  of  imagery, 
so  that  it  almost  seems  as  if  the  sensory  experience  were 
being  repeated.  It  follows,  therefore,  that  although  repro- 
ductive imagination  and  memory  are  often  nearly  iden- 
tical, yet  there  may  be  a  high  degree  of  imaginative 
activity  with  much  inaccuracy  of  memory  or  a  high  de- 
gree of  reliability  of  memory  with  a  limited  exercise  of 
imagination. 

In  constructive  imagination  laws  of  association  and 
volition  have  a  prominent  part.  The  most  common  use 
of  constructive  imagination  is  that  in  which  it  is  directed 

[7] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

by  words  or  symbols  of  some  kind.  If  you  are  told  how  the 
objects  in  a  room  have  been  arranged  and  are  then  able 
to  picture  its  appearance  so  that  you  find  it  just  as  you  ex- 
pected when  you  enter,  there  has  been  effective  use  of  the 
constructive  imagination.  Through  association  the  words 
call  up  images  of  objects  and  their  relations  and  the  uni- 
fied picture  is  formed  accordingly.  If  the  room  and  the 
objects  described  are  familiar,  it  may  be  easy  to  form  vivid 
pictures ;  but  if  the  arrangement  is  entirely  different  from 
that  to  which  one  has  been  accustomed,  it  may  be  difficult 
to  construct  the  scene  as  described  because  of  the  tendency 
to  reproduce  in  accordance  with  former  experiences. 

What  is  actually  imaged  when  a  description  is  given 
conforms  in  part  to  the  words  used  and  in  part  to  the 
kind  and  arrangement  of  images  which  are  most  familiar 
to  us.  This  may  be  illustrated  by  the  following  descrip- 
tion: "As  we  were  driving  along  the  road  we  saw  a  house 
and  a  barnyard  with  various  animals  in  it."  Some  per- 
sons in  listening  to  such  a  description  may  do  little  con- 
structing, but  merely  reproduce  vividly  some  suggested 
scene  with  which  they  are  familiar.  Those  who  construct  a 
definite  picture  are  likely  to  do  so  in  accordance  with  their 
usual  experience  of  roads,  houses,  barnyards,  and  animals. 
If  a  more  detailed  description  were  given,  the  whole  scene 
would  perhaps  have  to  be  changed.  For  example,  it  might 
be  said,  "The  house  is  sixty  feet  long,  five  feet  wide,  and 
forty  feet  high ;  the  road  is  of  white  crushed  stone ;  the 
fence  is  a  cactus  hedge ;  and  the  animals  are  elephants, 
camels,  kangaroos,  reindeer,  and  wolves."  One  must  then 
change  his  picture  so  completely  that  he  realizes  that  con- 
structive imagination  is  influenced  by  habit  as  much  or 
even  more  than  it  is  by  the  exact  meanings  of  words. 

[8] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

In  creative  imagination  one  pictures  according  to  his 
emotions,  desires,  and  purposes,  although  in  doing  so  he 
is  of  course  influenced  by  his  previous  mental  habits.  If 
you  are  asked  to  plan  how  the  objects  in  a  room  of  a 
certain  size  and  description  shall  be  arranged,  for  certain 
purposes  or  in  order  to  produce  the  most  beautiful  effect, 
you  must  exercise  your  creative  imagination.  If  you  pic- 
ture the  room  as  quite  similar  to  a  particular  model  or 
with  the  arrangement  most  familiar,  you  employ  less 
originality  in  creating  the  complex  image  than  if  the  char- 
acteristics of  various  rooms  are  combined  in  such  a  way 
as  to  make  one  of  a  new  type  that  is  useful  or  beautiful. 
Freedom  from  the  usual  is  one  of  the  marked  characteris- 
tics of  creative  imagination,  yet  if  this  freedom  does  not 
recognize  the  essential  nature  of  things,  the  product  of 
one's  creative  imagination  may  be  neither  useful  nor 
beautiful.  The  inventor  and  the  artist  must  show  freedom 
in  making  new  combinations,  but  the  complex  whole  must 
be  such  as  the  nature  of  the  material  and  the  purpose  of 
the  creation  demand,  or  it  will  be  of  no  value. 

These  three  forms  of  imagination  all  necessitate  the 
production  of  images  based  on  original  sensory,  experi- 
ences. Constructive  imagination  involves  the  ability  to 
separate  images  from  their  original  associates  and  to 
arrange  tRem  in  new  combinations  according  to  directions, 
while  creative  imagination  requires  the  same  power  to 
select  and  rearrange  images  and  also  the  faculty  of  deter- 
mining how  they  shall  be  arranged  in  order  that  some 
ideal  or  purpose  may  be  realized.  Reproductive  imagina- 
tion is  especially  valuable  in  describing  our  own  experi- 
ences ;  constructive  imagination,  in  the  understanding  and 
appreciation  of  descriptions  given  by  others  ;  and  creative 

[9] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 


J 


imagination,  in  evolving  imaginary  descriptions  and  stories, 
n  the  industries  reproductive  imagination  enables  one  to 
construct  according  to  a  sample  pattern,  constructive 
imagination  helps  one  to  follow  directions  and  interpret 
plans,  while  creative  imagination  gives  power  to  devise 
new  machines  and  processes.  In  art  reproductive  imagina- 
tion enables  one  to  reproduce  what  he  has  seen,  construc- 
tive imagination  helps  one  to  illustrate  a  story  or  poem, 
and  creative  imagination  is  the  source  of  every  original 
conception. 

?  We  see,  then,  that  the  materials  used  in  imagination 
are  necessarily  derived  from  sensory  experiences,  but  that 
these  materials  may  be  modified  and  arranged  in  ways 
quite  unlike  those  of  the  real  world  or  they  may  be 
arranged  in  accordance  with  the  actual  or  probable  events 
of  our  own  lives  or  those  of  others.  The  historian  who 
pictures  people  as  they  have  really  existed  is  using  his 
imagination  in  accordance  with  the  facts  of  particular 
situations.  The  novelist  who  describes  imaginary  charac- 
ters which  have  had  no  separate  individual  existence  may 
be  directing  his  fancy  in  accordance  with  the  nature  and 
relation  of  things  as  they  are  found  in  the  real  world,  or 
he  may  exercise  his  imagination  in  representing  what  will 
stir  the  emotions  or  produce  aesthetic  satisfaction  without 
regard  to  the  actuality,  probability,  or  even  possibility  of 
the  existence  of  such  things  as  he  describes.  In  the  first 
case  he  is  portraying  essential  but  not  literal  truth,  while 
in  the  latter  case  truth  is  regarded  only  so  far  as  is  neces- 
sary to  produce  the  desired  mental  effects. 

The  scientist  who  imagines  all  substances  as  consisting 
of  molecules  composed  of  ultimate  atoms,  or  who  pictures 
atoms  as  electrons  or  centers  of  electric  forces,  is  using 

[10] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

his  imagination  to  help  him  to  grasp  the  truth.  The  mere 
fact  that  things  can  be  imagined  more  vividly  one  way 
than  another  does  not  prove  the  truth  of  the  one  theory 
as  opposed  to  another. 

A  reader  who  pictures  accurately  what  is  described  by 
the  historian,  novelist,  or  scientist  is  truthfully  represent- 
ing what  they  have  set  forth,  but  some  of  what  is  imag- 
ined may  have  no  counterpart  in  the  world  of  objective 
reality.  Imagination  is  not  in  itself  either  true  or  false ; 
it  is  merely  a  mode  of  representing  experiences  in  con- 
sciousness. It  is  only  because  the  imagination  is  often 
occupied  with  representing  the  agreeable  rather  than  the 
actual  that  there  is  a  tendency  to  contrast  the  imaginary 
with  the  true  and  to  speak  of  a  liar  as  one  whose  imagina- 
tion is  too  strong.  The  impulse  to  imagine  things  as  one 
would  like  them  instead  of  as  they  are  may,  of  course,  lead 
to  unconscious  lying,  while  he  who  lies  intentionally  need 
not  necessarily  image  vividly  but  may  merely  strive  to  make 
others  form  pictures  which  do  not  conform  to  actuality. 

Imagination  as  a  method  of  working.    There  are  three 
principal  ways  of  meeting  situations  and  of  solving  prob- 
lems :  one  method  is  that  of  observing  and  manipulating  / 
objects,  another,  of  imaging  them,  and  the  third  is  thatj/ 
of  using  symbols  which  represent  them. 

By  the  first  method  one  would  find  how  many  inch 
cubes  there  are  in  a  three-inch  cube  by  cutting  it  into  inch 
cubes  and  counting  them,  while  by  the  second  method  he 
would  image  the  three-inch  cube  as  being  divided  into 
inch  cubes  and  count  without  actually  seeing  them.  By 
the  third  method  he  would  use  figures  or  symbols  to  repre- 
sent the  cube  and  the  mathematical  process  by  which  he 
could  calculate  the  number ;  for  example,  3x3x3  =  27. 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

If  you  are  asked  to  tell  how  many  posts  placed  a  rod 
apart  would  be  required  to  fence  a  field  eight  by  ten  rods, 
you  could  find  the  number  by  placing  the  posts  at  the 
proper  distances  and  counting  them,  or  you  could  imagine 
the  field  surrounded  by  the  posts  a  rod  apart  and  count 
the  number,  or,  without  representing  the  field  at  all,  you 
could  use  symbols  standing  for  distances  and  numbers 
and  calculate  according  to  the  formula,  "  The  number  of 
posts  equals  twice  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  field 
in  rods." 

You  may  determine  whether  two  colors  match  by  look- 
ing at  both  of  them  at  once ;  or  in  the  absence  of  the 
colors  you  may  imagine  how  they  look  and  decide  whether 
the  ribbon  seen  at  one  store  will  match  the  dress  seen  at 
another ;  or  one  who  is  used  to  dealing  with  colors  may 
represent  each  color  or  shade  by  a  number  and  letter  and 
can  thus  designate  what  colors  are  to  be  combined  or 
matched,  as  is  done  by  the  dyer  of  yarns.  The  first,  or 
perceptual,  method  is  surest  but  also  the  slowest  and 
sometimes  impracticable ;  the  method  of  imagination  or 
representation  is  quicker,  though  less  accurate,  but  one 
that  can  be  used  at  any  time ;  while  the  conceptual,  or 
symbol,  method,  when  proper  symbols  and  formulas  have 
been  learned,  is  quickest  and  most  accurate. 

The  child  in  building  a  house  with  blocks  is  likely  to 
depend  chiefly  upon  the  perceptual  method  in  choosing 
and  placing  his  blocks.  Later  he  will  be  able  to  image 
the  blocks  and  their  arrangement  before  actually  selecting 
and  placing  them,  while  an  architect  indicates  the  plan 
of  a  house  by  means  of  figures  and  lines. 

There  are  great  differences  in  people  as  to  their  ability 
to  deal  with  things  in  their  absence  and  as  to  the  methods 

[12] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

they  employ.  Some  may  use  images,  others  symbols. 
Some  persons  must  have  the  things  before  them,  others 
may  represent  them  so  vividly  that  it  is  not  necessary  to 
have  the  objects  present,  while  a  few  with  more  abstract 
concepts  need  only  symbols  and  formulas  in  order  to 
determine  conditions  and  quickly  form  a  plan  of  action. 
Imagination  may  therefore  be  regarded  as  a  mental  proc- 
ess in  which  images  of  things,  persons,  and  events  take 
the  place  of  the  sensations  that  may  be  or  have  been 
produced  by  them.  It  is  also  a  mode  of  thinking  in 
which  images  of  experiences  rather  than  symbols  stand- 
ing for  those  experiences  are  the  materials  with  which 
the  mind  works. 

Illustrations  and  exercises.  The  following  are  reports 
of  individuals  as  to  the  use  of  imagination.  It  will  be  well 
for  each  reader  to  note  down  instances  in  which  he  uses 
his  imagination  effectively  and  of  other  cases  when  it  fails 
to  serve  his  purposes  or  leads  him  into  error.  From  many 
such  observations  he  can  form  an  idea  of  the  part  that 
imagination  really  plays  in  his  mental  life. 

Images  play  a  large  part  in  my  existence.  While  reading 
books  I  almost  always  imagine  myself  to  be  certain  characters, 
while  acquaintances  take  other  parts.  But  when  reading  books 
which  are  not  stories  I  do  not  image  the  different  characters  as 
much  as  I  do  the  circumstances. 

In  day  dreaming,  when  I  close  my  eyes  I  can  always  see 
things  just  as  if  they  were  real.  I  also  feel  sensations  very 
keenly  as  they  impressed  me  in  the  first  place.  For  instance, 
one  day  last  summer  I  went  with  a  family  to  Mt.  Wachusett. 
My  girl  friend  and  I  tried  to  see  how  far  we  could  run  up  the 
Indian  trail  without  stopping.  In  thinking  of  this  day's  outing 
this  feeling  of  actual  fatigue  is  uppermost  in  my  thoughts. 

[13] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

The  next  thing  I  think  of  is  the  cool  place  we  found  in 
which  to  eat  our  dinner,  and  how  good  it  seemed  to  sit  down  to 
eat  after  being  so  tired.  I  can  actually  picture  the  whole  group 
as  we  walked,  ate,  or  did  other  things  throughout  the  day. 

I  always  see  in  my  "  mind's  eye "  -the  thing  itself,  hardly 
ever  words  or  definitions.  For  instance,  I  think  of  a  day  in 
camp.  I  see  perfectly  the  glassy  stillness  of  the  lake  at  sunrise ; 
I  hear  again  the  bugle  sounding  the  reveille  in  the  boys'  camp 
across  the  bay ;  I  hear  the  rattle  of  dishes  in  the  kitchen,  smell 
the  coffee,  and  the  fish  frying ;  and  so  on  throughout  the  whole 
day.  Every  little  incident  comes  back  into  my  mind,  and  I  see 
and  hear  and  live  again  all  those  delightful  experiences.  If  I 
close  my  eyes  now  I  see  plainly  the  tiny  bedroom  in  the  cottage, 
hear  the  rustle  of  the  leaves  and  the  soft  lap,  lap  of  the  water 
upon  the  rocks  of  the  shore  at  night.  So  it  is  with  all  my  past 
pleasures  -  They  flash  upon  that  inward  eye 
Which  is  the  bliss  of  solitude. 

In  thinking  of  people  I  usually  see  them  at  the  sound  of  the 
name.  On  some  occasions,  however,  I  have  an  auditory  image, 
as  of  the  trilling  laugh  of  my  favorite  cousin,  or  hear  again  the 
peculiar  tones  in  which  someone  has  spoken. 

Cicero  is  an  exception.  I  never  picture  the  man,  but  the  first 
page  of  the  textbook  and  his  first  oration  against  Catiline.  If  a 
book  were  given  me,  opened  at  that  place,  with  my  eyes  shut 
I  believe  I  could  put  my  finger  on  the  words  "  O  tempora ! 
O  mores ! "  so  vividly  do  I  see  them  on  that  page. 

I  cannot  image  the  fragrance  of  a  rose  from  just  the  abstract 
idea  "  rose,"  but  let  me  form  an  image  of  some  particular  rose 
or  roses  and  I  can  image  their  fragrance  and  thorns  as  easily 
as  their  beauty. 

My  imagination  often  reminds  me  of  my  duties.  If  I  do  not 
feel  like  writing  home  some  night,  I  picture  mother  looking  in 
vain  for  a  letter  from  me,  and  I  write  the  letter. 

[14] 


PRELIMINARY  REVIEW 

I  am  able  to  understand  the  people  I  come  in  contact  with 
by  imagining  their  feelings  and  motives.  I  am  able  to  under- 
stand the  different  studies  I  take  by  picturing  what  I  study 
instead  of  just  reading  it. 

In  imagining  a  day's  outing  I  thought  of  a  certain  grove  near 
a  pond  where  I  had  a  picnic  five  years  ago.  I  saw  the  baseball 
game  in  which  I  was  pitching  and  was  knocked  from  the  box. 
These  images  were  plainly  visual.  Then  I  had  a  motor  image 
of  the  races  in  which  I  strained  every  nerve  to  win.  Then  came 
my  gustatory  image  of  eating  a  large  quantity  of  sandwiches 
and  ice  cream  and  drinking  tonic.  The  motor  image  appeared 
again  of  my  struggling  to  complete  ten  strokes  in  the  water 
before  giving  up.  In  connection  with  the  baseball  I  could  place 
an  auditory  image,  that  of  hearing  encouragement  from  members 
of  my  side. 

I  can  never  recall  the  image  of  a  person's  face,  and  rarely 
of  a  person's  form.  If  I  try  hard  to  do  so  the  image  is  distorted 
or  unnatural.  I  can  remember  only  once  in  my  life  when  the 
image  of  a  face  has  come  to  me  vividly ;  that  was  the  face  of 
my  dead  uncle. 

Landscape  scenes,  no  matter  how  familiar,  are  never  imaged 
in  my  mind  except  in  a  very  vague  and  fragmentary  way.  My 
lack  of  imagination  in  this  line  does  not  prevent  me  from  enjoy- 
ing very  much  descriptions  of  scenery  in  books,  though  it  may 
be  only  the  beauty  of  the  language  that  impresses  me. 

My  poor  imagination  has  been,  I  think,  a  hindrance  to- 
me in  English  composition  and  in  the  study  of  geography. 
For  instance,  when  the  Mississippi  River  was  mentioned  I 
thought  not  of  a  river  but  of  the  line  representing  the  river  on 
the  map. 

I  was  surprised  to  find  how  much  and  to  what  good  use  I 
could  put  my  images,  vague  as  they  were,  in  solving  problems 
in  arithmetic. 

[15] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

When  I  am  sewing,  making  a  dress  or  hat,  I  picture  how  the 
dress  or  hat  will  look  when  finished.  If  I  haye  an  untrimmed 
hat,  I  picture  how  I  wish  it  to  look  and  then  trim  it  or  have 
it  trimmed. 

When  I  am  to  go  to  a  strange  place  for  a  day  or  two,  before 
I  go  I  picture  how  I  think  it  will  look. 

At  home  many  times  I  am  told  that  we  are  going  to  have 
a  certain  dish  for  supper  or  dinner,  and  I  am  disappointed 
when  it  doesn't  taste  as  I  had  imaged  it  would. 

When  trying  to  write  out  notes  for  folk  dancing  I  often  seem 
to  see  the  girls  in  the  different  positions  and  sometimes  I  can 
seem  to  hear  Miss  L.  giving  directions,  and  thus  I  can  write  the 
notes  more  fully.  When  answering  questions  in  "  Minimum 
Essentials  "  in  geography  I  often  visualize  the  map  of  Europe, 
or  if  I  want  a  particular  city  I  locate  it  mentally  on  the  map. 


[16] 


CHAPTER  II 

MENTAL  IMAGES 

\ 

Variety,  number,  and  vividness.  There  are  as  many 
kinds  of  mental  images  as  there  are  varieties  of  sensory 
experiences.  In  recalling  your  breakfast  orange  this  morn- 
ing you  may  have  an  image  of  its  shape  and  color,  of  the 
sound  it  made  when  you  dropped  it,  of  your  sensation  of 
movement  in  reaching  for  it,  of  how  it  felt  to  your  hand 
as  you  grasped  it,  its  odor  as  you  smelled  it,  and  its  taste 
as  you  began  eating  it.  You  may  also  imagine  the  feel- 
ing of  weariness,  hunger,  headache,  or  well-being  that  you 
experienced  at  the  same  time. 

In  imaging  the  visual  appearance  of  an  object  you  may 
think  not  only  of  its  form  and  size  but  also  of  its  color, 
as  orange,  red,  green,  or  blue.  In  imaging  the  experi- 
ence of  touching  an  object  you  may  represent  not  only  its 
feeling  of  smoothness  or  roughness  but  also  its  tempera- 
ture, as  warm  or  cold,  or  the  pain  that  it  may  have 
produced  if  it  were  sharp  or  struck  the  skin  with  force. 
In  representing  the  taste  of  an  object  you  may  image  it 
as  salt,  sour,  bitter,  or  sweet,  while  in  the  case  of  smell 
the  varieties  of  imagery  are  indefinitely  numerous. 

It  is  quite  probable  that  of  the  various  possible  images 
some  appear  much  more  frequently  and  wjti|  greater  vivid- 
ness than  others.  If  you  recall  your  breakfast  table  this 
morning,  your  images  may  be  chiefly  of  the  visual  appear- 
ance of  the  various  objects  and  persons,  or  you  may 

[17] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

mentally  hear  the  clatter  of  knives  and  forks  and  the 
voices  of  the  various  people  at  the  table.  Again,  the 
odor  of  the  food,  its  taste,  its  contact  with  the  hand  or 
the  tongue,  or  the  movements  made  in  procuring  and 
eating  it  may  be  most  prominent. 

In  anticipating  what  is  likely  to  occur  at  a  banquet  or 
a  reception  your  mind  may  be  filled  with  visual  pictures, 
with  auditory  images  of  voices  and  music,  with  images 
from  any  of  the  other  senses,  or  from  general  bodily  feel- 
ing. Any  or  all  of  these  may  appear,  but  it  is  probable 
\that  one  sort  of  imagery  will  occur  much  more  frequently 
than  others  in  your  imaginative  pictures  and  also  that  this, 
or  possibly  a  different  kind  of  imagery,  will  be  more  vivid  ; 
that  is,  more  like  a  sensation  than  any  of  the  others. 

With  a  large  proportion  of  people  visual  images  occupy 
the  most  prominent  place,  auditory  next,  followed  some- 
times by  one,  sometimes  by  another  of  the  other  varieties. 
ySome  persons  depend  almost  entirely  upon  one  kind  of 
image,  but  most  people  form  all  kinds  to  a  greater  or 
less  extent. 

There  are  a  few  whose  images  of  objects  are  so  vague 
and  indefinite  that  they  assert  that  they  have  no  images 
worth  mentioning.  When  you  name  an  object  such  as 
an  apple  they  know  its  shape,  size,  color,  etc.,  but  they 
do  not  image  it  with  sufficient  vividness  to  produce  a  con- 
scious state  like  that  experienced  when  one  sees,  smells, 
or  eats  an  apple.  It  is  difficult  for  those  who  form  vivid 
images  to  understand  how  it  is  possible  to  have  any  idea  of 
an  apple  when  it  is  not  present  without  forming  distinct 
images  of  the  sensations  that  it  gives,  but  nevertheless  we 
must  accept  the  statement  of  many  observers  that  such 
may  be  the  case. 

[18] 


MENTAL  IMAGES 

Control  of  images.  Many  persons  who  under  ordinary 
circumstances  have  only  vague  or  fleeting  images  of  the 
objects  of  which  they  are  thinking  are  able,  if  they  wish 
to  do  so,  to  form  vivid  images  and  hold  them  in  mind 
for  several  seconds.  On  the  other  hand,  some  people  who 
ordinarily  image  vividly  in  all  their  thinking  may  be  unable 
to  keep  any  selected  image  in  mind  and  make  it  more 
distinct.  It  is  not  at  all  unusual  for  those  who  occasionally 
form  vivid  images  of  smell  to  be  utterly  unable  to  form 
voluntarily  an  image  of  even  the  most  familiar  odors.  In 
general,  however,  the'  images  that  are  spontaneously  most 
prominent  in  consciousness  are  also  most  easily  controlled. 

A  few  people  seem  to  have  almost  complete  control 
over  certain  images  so  that  they  can  deal  with  them  just 
as  they  would  with  real  objects.  A  painter,  for  example, 
may  study  his  model  properly  posed,  then  dismiss  her  and 
paint  from  the  mental  image  that  he  has  formed ;  or  a 
musician  may  image  so  vividly  the  tones  corresponding 
to  a  musical  score  as  to  know  exactly  how  it  will  sound 
when  played.  Such  vividness  and  power  of  control  of 
images  are,  however,  rare.  Most  people  believe  that  they 
have  more  vivid  images  and  better  control  over  them  than 
they  really  possess.  You  may  think  that  you  have  a  clear 
and  accurate  image  of  a  chair,  a  dish,  or  a  postage  stamp, 
but  if  you  are  asked  to  draw  it  or  describe  it  minutely,  it 
will  usually  be  found  that  the  image  is  not  nearly  so  detailed 
and  accurate  as  the  actual  perception. 

Control  of  images  may  be  tested  not  only  by  represent- 
ing mentally  the  sensations  an  object  has  actually  given 
you  but  by  imaging  how  it  would  appear  under  various 
conditions.  For  example,  if  an  object  has  been  seen  only 
from  the  front  in  its  natural  size  and  position,  can  you 

[19] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

imagine  how  it  would  look  seen  at  an  angle  or  from  above, 
or  if  its  dimensions  were  greatly  enlarged,  or  if  it  were 
placed  much  nearer  or  farther  away,  or  if  its  color  and 
its  surroundings  were  changed  ?  People  often  purchase 
objects  that  prove  entirely  unsatisfactory  when  placed  in 
their  homes  because  they  are  unable  to  represent  their 
appearance  in  certain  surroundings.  A  person  who  can 
image  a  familiar  tune  as  played  upon  the  piano  may  be 
unable  to  image  the  same  tune  played  on  a  violin. 

Power  of  constructive  imagination  depends  very  largely 
upon  the  degree  of  control  that  one  has  of  his  images. 
This  is  illustrated  by  the  following :  A  three-inch  cube, 
red  on  the  outside  and  white  on  the  inside,  is  cut  into 
inch  cubes.  How  many  cubes  will  there  be  with  one  red 
surface,  how  many  with  two  red  surfaces,  and  how  many 
with  three  ?  Another  test  is  to  image  a  long  word  and 
then  see  if  you  can  name  the  letters  backward  correctly 
and  as  rapidly  as  you  could  if  you  were  looking  at  the  word. 

Why  some  images  are  usually  more  prominent  than 
others.  Extensive  experiments  show  that  most  people 
form  more  visual  images  than  any  other  kind,  and  in  a 
considerable  number  of  cases  the  visual  images  are  also 
most  vivid  and  most  completely  under  voluntary  control. 
There  are  several  reasons  why  this  should  be  so.  In  the 
first  place  nearly  all  material  things  are  visible,  while  many 
of  them  have  neither  taste  nor  odor.  Again,  in  perceiv- 
ing an  object  that  may  yield  several  kinds  of  sensation 
we  almost  always  see  it  many  more  times  than  we  hear 
it,  touch  it,  taste  it,  or  smell  it.  It  is  not  at  all  strange, 
therefore,  that  when  that  object  is  represented  in  our 
minds,  its  visual  appearance  is  the  most  prominent  and 
perhaps  the  only  image  that  is  formed. 

[20] 


MENTAL  IMAGES 

Again,  if  we  notice  the  ways  in  which  the  various  sense 
organs  are  used  we  shall  find  that  the  eye  is  under  much 
better  control  and  much  more  active  than  any  other  sense 
organ.  We  can  not  only  shut  out  all  sensation  by  closing 
the  eyes  but  we  can  instantly  turn  them  away  from  what 
we  do  not  wish  to  see,  and  fix  them  upon  some  other 
object.  It  is  not  easy  to  close  the  ear  to  all  sounds,  and 
it  is  impossible  to  turn  completely  from  one  sound  to 
another.  We  can  get  sensations  of  touch  from  any  object 
near  us,  but  a  much  longer  time  is  required  to  approach 
objects  and  touch  them  than  to  look  at  them.  Taste  is 
much  like  touch  in  these  respects,  and  many  objects  yield 
no  taste  whatever.  With  regard  to  olfactory  sensations 
there  is  very  little  possibility  of  controlling  them  except 
by  closing  the  nostrils  or  keeping  at  a  sufficient  distance 
from  the  source.  Since  the  visual  sensations  are  so  easily 
and  continuously  controlled  it  is  not  strange  that  we  should 
also  develop  ready  control  of  visual  images. 

The  prominence  of  visual  imagery  has  also  been  in-  V' 
creased  by  the  conditions  introduced  by  modern  civiliza- 
tion. Visual  language  and  the  extensive  use  of  pictures 
and  diagrams  have  greatly  stimulated  visual  activity. 
Among  people  who  read  little,  auditory  images  are  often 
decidedly  prominent.  This  applies  both  to  children  who 
have  not  yet  learned  to  read  and  to  adults  who  make 
little  use  of  books  and  papers. 

Verbal  images.  Some  persons  instead  of  imaging  things 
image  the  words  or  symbols  that  stand  for  them.  Your 
own  tendency  in  this  respect  may  be  discovered  in  the 
following  way :  Go  over  carefully  in  your  mind  your  ex-- 
periences  at  a  picnic  or  a  party,  or  make  out  plans  of  what 
you  are  going  to  do  on  a  certain  day.  After  you  have 

[21] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

done  so  notice  to  what  extent  your  mind  has  been  filled 
with  images  of  things  and  events  as  they  have  appeared 
or  would  appear  to  you,  and  to  what  extent  it  has  been 
occupied  with  words  suggesting  or  describing  those  objects 
and  events.  Some  persons  will  find  these  images  to  be 
almost  wholly  concrete,  while  a  few  will  have  chiefly  a 
series  of  images  of  words  as  either  seen,  heard,  or  spoken. 
Some  will  have  both  kinds  of  imagery,  and  in  many  in- 
stances if  a  person  is  asked  to  describe  the  scene  that 
he  has  been  picturing,  many  of  his  concrete  images  will 
give  place  to  verbal,  that  is,  images  of  words.  Others, 
however,  speak  or  write  words  with  little  or  no  previous 
imagery  of  what  they  are  to  be. 

Such  an  experiment  as  this  would  seem  to  reveal  the 
fact  that  definite  images,  either  concrete  or  verbal,  ordi- 
narily play  a  minor  part  in  the  thought  processes  of  some 
individuals.  They  become  conscious  of  various  events  and 
describe  them,  but  with  only  faint  and  fleeting  images 
of  things  or  words.  It  is  not  improbable,  however,  that 
many  persons  who  think  that  images  are  present  to  only 
a  slight  extent  in  their  ordinary  thinking  do  in  reality 
form  motor,  or  kinaesthetic,  images.  They  experience  again 
the  movements  that  they  made  when  an  event  happened, 
or  the  movements  involved  in  speaking  or  writing  the 
words  describing  it.  Such  imagery  is  prominent  in  many 
people,  but  the  individual  is  not  always  distinctly  aware  of 
the  fact.  This  kind  of  image  is  often  mingled  with  other 
kinds  and  with  actual  sensations  of  movement  to  such  an 
extent  that  it  is  not  noticed.  Many  people  who  think  they 
have  distinct  images  of  taste  find,  upon  more  careful 
observation,  that  they  are  only  imaging  the  motions  of 
the  tongue  and  lips,  and  perhaps  actually  making  such 

[22] 


MENTAL  IMAGES 

motions,  while  genuine  taste  images  are  scarcely  present 
at  all.  In  a  similar  way  instead  of  imaging  the  feeling 
of  objects  to  the  skin  we  image  the  movement  of  a  finger 
over  the  object.  Even  visual  images  are  closely  associated 
with  the  actual  movements  of  the  eye  and  with  images 
of  such  movement.  Again,  in  using  verbal  images  actual 
and  imaged  movements  play  a  large  part.  It  is  safe  to 
,  say  that  motor,  or  kinaesthetic,  images  figure  largely  in 
the  mental  operations  of  all  persons,  whether  they  seem 
to  have  much  or  little  distinct  imagery,  either  concrete  or 
verbal.  On  the  other  hand,  many  people  who  think  that 
their  motor  images  are  very  vivid  will  find  upon  close 
observation  that  what  they  had  supposed  to  be  motor 
images  are  really  sensations  of  actual  movements  that  / 
they  are  making  while  engaged  in  thought. 

Motor  images  represent  our  reactions  to  things  and 
events.  As  sensations  are  merely  signals  to  which  we 
react  in  appropriate  ways,  it  is  more  important  to  us  to 
know  what  to  do  when  a  certain  sensation  is  experienced 
than  it  is  to  observe  the  exact  character  of  that  sensation. 
It  is  natural,  therefore,  that  in  representing  past  experi- 
ences, or  those  that  may  come  in  the  future,  the  action 
involved  should  hold  a  prominent  place.  For  this  reason 
actual  movements  and  images  of  movements  play  a  large  >  / 
part  in  the  mental  operations  of  all  persons  whether  they 
have  much  or  little  vivid  imagery  of  other  kinds. 

EXERCISES  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Read  the  following  sentences  and  notice  which  of  the  images 
aroused  by  the  italicized  words  are  most  vivid : 

1.  The  dog  is  one  of  the  most  useful  of  animals.   There  is  no 
musical  instrument  equal  to  a  violin.    Not  all  churches  have  bells. 

[23] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

He  ordered  pork  for  dinner.   At  breakfast  he  had  oranges.    Of  all 
flowers  I  like  roses  best. 

2.  To  test  control  of  images,  form  as  vivid  images  as  you  can 
(a)  of  the  taste  of  sugar  (not  how  it  feels  on  the  tongue),  (b}  the  odor 
of  violets,  (c)  the  feeling  involved  in  the  movements  of  running 
upstairs,  (d)  the  color  and  shading  of  an  apple  of  some  familiar 
variety,  (e)  the  pitch  and  quality  of  a  friend's  voice,  (f)  the  exact 
color  of  a  friend's  eyes. 

3.  In  the  case  of  symbols  notice  in  what  way  you  think  of  names, 
figures,  formulas,  etc.,  whether  as  they  sound  or  as  they  look,  and 
in  which  form  you  can  best  hold  them  vividly  before  the  mind. 
Notice  also  whether  you  make  slight  movements  or  image  move- 
ments as  you  think  the  symbols. 

4.  Test  your  verbal  images  by  timing  yourself  as  you  try  to  spell 
backwards  familiar  words.    The  average  time  required  by  adults  for 
spelling    backwards   such   words   as    the   following :    "  constancy," 
"  treatment,"   "  carpenter,"   "  respected,"  was  found   by  Professor 
Gordon  to  be  about  six  seconds  for  those  who  have  good  visual 
images  and  eight  seconds  for  others. 

5.  Compare  your  experiences  with  the  following  observations  that 
have  been  made  by  other  students : 

Pictured  sensations  are  very  common  to  me ;  in  fact,  I  cannot 
imagine  any  condition,  hunger,  joy,  want,  or  misery  that  would  be 
impossible  for  me  to  feel  and  see  mentally.  Visual  images  are  more 
numerous  in  my  experience  than  any  other,  while  auditory,  olfactory, 
and  gustatory  are  next  in  order.  In  visual  images  I  picture  the  past 
(actual  occurrences),  the  present,  and  a  wonderful  future.  A  word 
suggestive  of  a  past  experience  will  bring  the  entire  scene  and  even 
the  entire  day  to  me  as  plainly  as  if  I  had  seen  it  on  a  moving-picture 
screen.  If  the  ocean  is  represented  I  actually  see  its  motion,  smell 
the  salt  breeze,  the  old  wharves,  the  fish.  If  the  country  is  pictured 
I  smell  the  pine  woods  and  hear  the  murmur  of  the  wind  in  the 
branches.  Events  of  a  day  follow  rapidly  in  a  short  space  of  time ; 
although  each  is  plain  and  clear  in  detail. 

In  ordinary  conversation  mental  images  are  continuous;  in  fact, 
in  singing,  studying,  playing,  walking,  I  use  imagery  extensively. 

[24] 


MENTAL  IMAGES 

I  realize  into  what  misery  one's  imagination  may  lead  one,  and  I  try 
to  control  mine  to  some  extent ;  however,  it  is  very  strong,  and 
visual  images  are  almost  always  prominent.  I  picture  the  impossible 
also,  although  the  possible  and  probable  are  more  common. 

I  have  spoken  of  olfactory  and  auditory  sensations  which  I  often 
experience ;  gustatory  is  perhaps  equally  recurrent.  I  can  taste  the 
salt  spray  of  the  ocean,  bananas  and  cream,  watermelon,  sulphur,  etc. 

I  could  write  indefinitely  of  mental  images,  because  I  have  them 
almost  continuously,  and  concerning  everything  in  this  world  and 
the  next. 

The  word  "coffee"  brought  to  my  mind  a  cup  of  coffee  standing 
on  a  table,  and  then  I  thought  of  the  odor.  The  first  image  was 
•visual,  and  the  second  was  of  smell. 

I  tried  five  other  experiments  of  this  same  kind.  The  words 
"  cow  "  and  "  horse  "  brought  to  my  mind  a  cow  and  a  horse  which 
we  have  at  home.  The  word  "mountain"  brought  to  my  mind 
Mt.  Wachusett  as  we  can  see  it  from  the  dormitory  windows.  At 
the  word  "  box  "  I  saw  a  small  pasteboard  shoe  box.  At  the  word 
"  river  "  I  saw  Millers  River  at  a  certain  point  where  I  had  been 
accustomed  to  cross  it  on  my  way  to  school.  All  these  were  visual 
images  of  the  objects,  and  in  each  case  they  were  memory  images. 

My  images  are  mostly  visual,  then  gustatory,  then  olfactory.  In 
fact,  when  anything  at  all  is  spoken  about  I  see  an  image  of  it. 
Always  I  form  visual  images  and  sometimes  others  in  addition. 

It  seems  that  the  visual  image  is  most  prominent;  in  almost  all 
cases  the  visual  image  comes  first,  auditory  second,  and  so  on.  Usu- 
ally the  image  recalls  some  personal  experience  or  the  time  or  place 
of  occurrence. 


[25] 


CHAPTER  III 
IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 

After-images.  Many  persons  have  noticed  that  sensa- 
tions of  sight,  touch,  or  sound  may  continue  after  the 
stimulus  producing  them  has  ceased.  This  phenomenon 
can  easily  be  studied,  especially  in  the  case  of  the  eye. 
If  one  looks  for  a  few  minutes  at  a  window,  then  turns 
the  eye  upon  a  gray  surface  or  a  wall,  he  will  see  an  out- 
line of  the  window ;  or  if  he  will  look  at  a  brightly  colored 
spot  steadily  for  several  minutes  and  then  look  at  a  gray 
surface,  he  will  perceive  a  colored  spot  shaped  like  that 
at  which  he  has  been  looking  and  usually  of  a  color  com- 
plementary to  it.  The  term  given  to  this  phenomenon 
is  "  after-image,"  although  "  after-sensation  "  would  prob- 
ably be  more  correct.  Careful  experiment  shows  that  none 
of  the  sense  organs  respond  instantly  when  they  are  stimu- 
lated, and  also  that  after  the  stimulus  ceases  their  activity 
continues  for  a  short  time.  It  is  to  the  latter  fact  that 
after-images  are  due. 

After-images  are  of  two  kinds,  positive  and  negative. 
Positive  after-images  seem  to  be  the  result  of  continued 
activity  of  the  sensory  apparatus  of  the  same  kind  as  that 
incited  by  the  stimulus,  while  negative  after-images  are  the 
result  of  the  kind  of  activity  which  takes  place  after  the 
sense  organ  has  become  fatigued.  Early  in  the  morning, 

[26] 


IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 

when  the  eyes  are  fresh,  if  one  glances  at  the  window 
and  then  at  the  wall,  he  will  see  a  bright  outline  of  the 
window ;  while  if  he  gazes  at  the  window  for  a  while  and 
then  looks  at  the  wall,  the  outline  of  the  window  will  be 
dark.  If  one  looks  at  a  red  object  for  an  instant  and  then 
at  a  gray  surface,  he  may  see  a  red  spot ;  but  if  he  fixes 
the  eye  upon  the  red  spot  for  some  time  and  then  looks 
at  gray,  he  will  see  a  green  spot.  In  each  case  the  first 
was  a  positive  and  the  second  a  negative  after-image.  Such 
images  as  these  are  of  an  entirely  different  sort  from  those 
usually  known  as  mental  images. 

In  the  case  of  a  mental  image  the  activity  excited  by 
the  stimulus  to  the  sense  organ  has  ceased,  and  yet  it  is 
possible  for  one  mentally  to  experience  what  affected  his 
senses  minutes,  hours,  or  years  ago.  It  is  supposed  that 
in  the  case  of  a  mental  image  the  same  nerve  centers  in 
the  brain  as  those  affected  by  the  original  stimulus  to  the 
sense  organ  are  reexcited  by  nerve  impulses  from  some 
other  portion  of  the  brain.  Whether  there  is  also  some 
reexcitation  of  the  nerve  elements  in  the  sense  organ  is 
a  disputed  point.  In  any  case  it  is  clear  that  a  mental 
image  proper  is  not  wholly  or  chiefly  excited  by  immediate 
stimulation  of  the  senses. 

Hallucinations.  As  has  already  been  stated,  some  per- 
sons can  bring  before  the  mind  images  that  are  almost  as 
vivid  as  sensations  from  the  real  objects.  If  this  were  com- 
mon and  if  images  differed  from  sensations  in  no  other 
respect  than  in  vividness,  great  confusion  would  result. 
If  you  imaged  a  person  sitting  in  an  empty  chair  oppo- 
site you,  you  would  be  likely  to  think  the  person  was  really 
there.  When  you  form  such  an  image  and  look  directly 
at  the  empty  chair,  if  the  image  were  stronger  than  the 

[27] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

sensation,  the  back  of  the  chair  would  be  invisible.  If, 
however,  the  sensation  is  more  intense  than  the  image, 
you  are  forced  to  see  the  back  of  the  chair  and  cannot, 
therefore,  believe  that  it  is  occupied  by  the  person  you 
have  imaged.  If  your  eyes  are  closed  it  is  much  easier 
for  you  to  believe  that  the  person  is  really  there.  There 
are  persons  who  occasionally  have  images  that  rival  sensa- 
tions in  intensity.  One  lady  who  was  frequently  troubled 
with  such  mental  pictures  was  compelled  to  use  some 
other  sense  than  sight  for  testing  the  reality  of  her  per- 
ceptions. For  example,  once  when  at  a  reception  she  was 
told  to  take  a  certain  chair  in  which  she  saw  someone 
sitting.  She  hesitated,  then  put  out  her  hand  to  the  figure, 
and,  finding  nothing,  took  the  chair.  In  general  there  is 
such  a  difference  between  a  mental  image  and  a  sensation 
that  if  the  two  are  opposed  to  each  other  there  is  no 
trouble  in  distinguishing  between  them. 

If,  however,  an  image  is  vivid,  and  there  is  no  contra- 
dicting sensation,  there  may  be  difficulty  in  determining 
whether  the  object  imaged  is  present  or  not.  Even  then, 
however,  the  image  usually  does  not  seem  real.  This  is 
partly  because  one  is  generally  conscious  of  its  having 
been  called  into  mind  voluntarily  or  by  some  association 
and  partly  because  the  sense  organ  is  not  f elf  to  be  active. 
The  most  favorable  condition  for  mental  images  to  be  in- 
distinguishable from  sensations  excited  by  present  objects 
is  that  in  which  the  sense  organ  is  excited  in  an  indefi- 
nite way  while  a  mental  image  is  being  held  in  mind.  In 
half  darkness,  when  the  real  outlines  of  objects  are  invisi- 
ble, it  is  easy  to  see  almost  any  object  one  may  image 
and  to  believe  that  it  really  is  present.  This  is  the  reason 
why  ghosts,  wild  beasts,  etc.,  are  frequently  seen  in  the 

[28] 


IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 

twilight.  The  feeling  of  fear  arouses  an  image  of  that 
which  is  most  feared,  and  the  indefinite  sensations  from 
some  real  object  give  the  feeling  of  reality  which  makes 
the  person  believe  that  his  mental  image  is  a  genuine 
percept  of  the  imaged  object. 

In  such  cases  one  has  experienced  what  may  be  called 
either  a  hallucination  or  an  illusion.  It  is  generally  held 
that  if  there  is  no  objective  stimulus  corresponding  to  the 
mental  image  it  is  a  hallucination,  while  if  there  is  an 
objective  stimulus  that  is  modified  and  misinterpreted  it 
is  an  illusion.  It  is,  however,  impossible  to  draw  a  sharp 
line  between  hallucinations  and  illusions  of  this  type.  A 
sense  organ  is  usually  being  stimulated  in  some  way  when 
the  image  is  formed,  and  whenever  a  hallucinatory  image 
seems  to  be  real  it  is  probably  because  the  sense  organ 
has  had  some  stimulus  that  harmonizes  with  the  image. 
Doubtless  movement  of  the  sense  organ  is  usually  also  a 
factor  in  giving  reality  to  such  images. 

The  following  is  a  case  of  auditory  illusion  which,  if 
there  had  been  no  analysis  of  the  situation,  might  have 
been  classed  as  a  hallucination  : 

One  year  ago  I  slept  in  a  room  with  a  porch  roof  just  out- 
side my  windows  and  a  large  tree  near.  In  the  middle  of  the 
night  I  awoke,  and  as  I  lay  listening  I  could  hear  voices ;  then 
a  ladder  was  placed  against  the  side  of  the  porch,  and  I  heard 
steps  mounting  the  ladder ;  then  whispers  and  sounds  as  of  two 
men  crossing  my  porch  roof.  The  window  was  slowly  opened 
and  more  steps  were  heard. 

I  screamed  for  help.  Mother  came,  and  we  discovered  the 
steps  to  have  been  the  branches  of  the  tree  rubbing  and  bump- 
ing on  the  corner  of  the  house,  while  the  whispers  and  the  voices 
were  the  leaves  rustling  in  the  wind. 

[29] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

In  some  cases  hallucinations  are  doubtless  caused  by 
irritation  of  a  sensory  nerve.  A  common  example  of  this 
is  found  when  quinine  produces  a  ringing  in  the  ears  or 
when  pressure  on  the  nerve  trunk  at  the  elbow  produces 
a  tingling  in  the  fingers.  Persons  who  have  lost  a  foot 
frequently  feel  discomfort  in  an  absent  toe,  caused  doubt- 
less by  some  irritation  of  the  nerve  originally  connected 
with  that  member. 

Hallucinations,  when  they  not  only  seem  real  but  are 
believed  in,  in  spite  of  the  testimony  of  other  people  and 
of  other  senses,  become  delusions.  In  such  cases  the  indi- 
vidual is  no  longer  able  to  distinguish  between  the  world 
of  images  and  the  world  of  real  objects.  This  is  a  com- 
mon condition  of  many  persons  who  are  insane,  and  fre- 
quently accounts  for  their  peculiar  actions.  Temporary 
hallucinations  are  often  produced  through  illness  and  by 
the  use  of  drugs.  Fortunately  most  people  in  normal ( 
health  have  no  difficulty  in  distinguishing  between  their 
mental  images  and  their  real  experiences  with  objects  that 
are  present. 

Suggested  and  suggesting  images.  There  is  a  kind  of 
illusion,  however,  in  which  images  play  a  considerable 
part,  that  is  very  common.  Most  objects  with  which  we 
are  familiar  are  able  to  give  us  several  kinds  of  sensation, 
and  when  we  get  one  of  the  sensations  we  are  likely  to 
image  the  others.  This  is  the  reason  why  one  may  almost 
taste  the  food  which  he  sees,  or  feel  the  roughness  of  a 
file  at  which  he  looks.  If  one  is  led  to  form  an  image 
of  a  sensation  which  has  frequently  been  associated  with 
one  that  is  actually  being  received,  he  may  think  that  he 
is  also  receiving  the  sensation  which  he  has  imaged.  If, 
for  instance,  one  has  seen  an  atomizer  and  smelled  the 

[30] 


IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 

substance  diffused  in  the  air  by  it,  it  is  generally  not  diffi- 
cult, if  you  speak  of  the  odor  of  violets  and  then  use  an 
atomizer  containing  water  only,  asking  him  to  notice  what 
the  perfume  is,  to  make  him  think  that  he  smells  violets. 
If  a  man  is  given  the  idea  that  he  is  to  be  bled,  and  then 
his  arm  is  slightly  pricked  and  some  warm  water  allowed 
to  flow  over  it,  he  will  almost  surely  think  he  is  bleeding. 
It  is  claimed  that  in  France  a  criminal  was  killed  by  this 
process  of  mentally  bleeding  him  to  death. 

It  has  been  found  in  laboratory  experiments  that  if  one 
has  had  the  experience  of  a  wire's  becoming  hot  when 
an  electric  current  is  turned  into  it,  he  will  feel  the  wire 
becoming  hot  soon  after  seeing  the  movement  of  turning 
on  the  electricity,  although  no  current  is  really  turned  on. 

In  some  cases  a  spot  resembling  a  burn  has  been  pro- 
duced on  a  person's  skin  by  applying  a  postage  stamp 
to  it,  after  giving  the  subject  the  idea  that  he  was  to  be 
burned.  In  such  cases  it  is  probable  that  imaging  the 
spot  being  touched  causes  an  increased  flow  of  blood  to 
that  part,  and  hence  there  are  physiological  reasons  for 
the  redness  that  results.  Illusions  of  this  kind  are  fre- 
quent and  easily  produced  in  a  slight  degree,  yet  they  are 
generally  quickly  discovered  and  corrected. 

Although  mental  images  may  cause  one  occasional  illu- 
sions, they  serve  an  important  and  useful  part  in  our  per- 
ceptions. If  something  has  been  lost  and  you  join  in  the 
search  for  it,  you  always  wish  to  know  what  it  looks  like. 
Your  chances  of  rinding  it  are  very  much  increased  by 
holding  in  your  mind  an  image  of  its  appearance.  What 
is  true  under  these  circumstances  is  true  of  all  our  per- 
ceptions. If  we  form  some  sort  of  image  before  looking, 
we  perceive  much  more  quickly.  If  you  are  expecting  to 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

see  a  certain  person  in  a  crowd  or  to  hear  his  footstep 
approaching,  you  will  realize  his  presence  much  more 
quickly  than  if  you  have  no  such  image  in  mind.  Even 
a  familiar  acquaintance  may  not  be  noticed  or,  if  seen, 
may  not  be  recognized  immediately  if  he  is  in  unfamiliar 
surroundings. 

Anticipatory  images  of  what  people  are  about  to  say 
help  us  to  understand  even  when  they  speak  indistinctly, 
and  in  a  similar  way  we  may  be  able  to  read  with  rapidity 
poor  writing  or  dimly  seen  print.  The  ability  thus  to 
anticipate  sensations  increases  the  speed  of  all  our  read- 
ing and  is  of  equal  value  in  our  reactions  to  people.  The 
skilled  boxer,  basket-ball  or  tennis  player  continually  antici- 
pates his  opponent's  movements  and  thus  prepares  for  them 
in  advance. 

Standard  images.  As  we  become  familiar  with  the 
numberless  objects  around  us  we  form  what  may  be  called 
standard  images  which  play  a  considerable  part  in  our  per- 
ceptions and  judgments.  These  standard  images  help  us 
to  translate  from  one  sense  to  another.  We  see  an  object 
of  a  certain  size,  and  we  know  just  about  what  sensation 
of  weight  it  will  give  if  we  lift  it.  We  see  an  object  at  a 
distance  of  ten  feet,  and  by  means  of  our  standard  ideas 
of  the  appearance  of  objects  at  various  distances  we  are 
able  to  compare  it  with  another  object  two  feet  or  ten 
rods  away.  Each  species  of  plant  and  animal  has  for  us 
a  standard  size  and  appearance,  and  we  compare  any  indi- 
vidual specimen  with  this  model  and  judge  as  to  whether 
it  is  large  or  small  or  in  what  way  it  differs  from  the 
usual.  These  standard  images  of  form,  size,  and  appear- 
ance of  different  classes  of  objects  and  of  different  units 
of  measure  are  of  great  use  not  only  in  our  perceptions 

[32] 


IMAGES  AND  PERCEPTS 

but  also  in  constructive  and  creative  imagination.  When 
we  listen  to  a  description  mentioning  objects  such  as  apples, 
dogs,  horses,  fences,  trees,  etc.,  our  standard  images  of 
these  objects  appear.  If  descriptions  are  given  in  detail, 
we  modify  these  images  accordingly.  Accurate  construc- 
tive imagination  is  possible  only  when  standard  images 
are  formed  and  can  be  correctly  compared. 

The  notes  of  the  musical  scale  help  to  form  standard 
auditory  images  that  are  useful  in  music,  although  there 
may  be  much  variation  in  the  loudness  and  quality  of  the 
notes  as  sounded  by  different  instruments  or  persons. 
Words  often  heard  also  lead  to  the  formation  of  standard 
images  which  aid  in  recognizing  those  words  whatever 
the  loudness  or  quality  of  the  tones  in  which  they  are 
spoken.  In  a  similar  way,  though  to  a  less  extent,  there 
are  standard  images  of  weight,  sweetness,  coldness,  etc. 

EXERCISES  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS 

1.  Experiments  on  after-images  should  be  made  and  the  results 
compared  with  those  obtained  by  others. 

2.  Examples  of  illusions  due  to  imagination  and  of  hallucina- 
tions should  be  recalled  and  explained. 

3.  It  will  be  interesting  for  several  persons  to  compare  the  stand- 
ard images  that  they  usually  form  of  certain  classes  of  objects,  such 
as  "  horse,"  "  house,"  "  soldier,"  "  knife,"  etc. 

4.  Classify  the  following  illustrations  and  compare  them  with 
some  of  your  own : 

One  night  I  spent  about  two  hours  listening  to  ghost  stories. 
After  a  while  I  had  occasion  to  go  out  of  doors.  I  looked  a  short 
way  ahead  of  me.  There  I  saw  what  appeared  to  be  a  person  in  a 
white  shirt  with  blood  running  from  his  arm  as  if  he  had  been  hurt. 
My  brother  investigated  and  found  a  bundle  of  rose  bushes  and  bulbs 

[33] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

with  red  labels,  covered  with  a  piece  of  white  canvas,  which  had  been 
delivered  that  afternoon.  After  hearing  the  ghost  stories  my  imagina- 
tion pictured  different  unreal  images. 

In  reading  a  book,  especially  if  the  scene  was  laid  in  foreign  coun- 
tries, I  have  been  so  interested  and  seemed  to  have  so  fully  imagined 
myself  in  the  same  place  as  that  mentioned  in  the  book  that  on  being 
disturbed  it  took  me  a  second  or  so  to  find  I  was  in  my  own  home. 

I  was  sent  into  another  room  to  get  a  box  which  was  left  on  the 
table.  I  hadn't  seen  the  box,  but  I  formed  an  image  of  it,  on  the 
corner  of  the  table,  while  I  was  walking  into  the  room. 

I  read  a  very  good  description  of  a  summer  day's  outing,  and 
before  I  had  finished  I  found  that  I  was  fitting  each  incident  with 
a  day's  outing  which  I  had. 

When  anyone  describes  to  me  a  scene,  a  gown,  a  house,  I  can 
see  it  vividly.  When  it  isn't  described  fully  I  make  the  picture  to 
suit  my  own  taste.  For  instance,  if  someone  is  describing  a  bungalow 
I  have  not  seen,  if  I  am  told  about  the  living  room  and  nothing  what- 
ever is  said  about  a  fireplace,  I  see  a  fireplace  in  the  room,  unless 
the  person  distinctly  tells  me  there  is  none.  As  the  person  continues 
to  describe  something,  I  get  ahead  of  what  is  being  said  and  imagine 
how  the  object  looks.  Sometimes  I  am  right,  but  more  often  my 
visual  image  is  incorrect. 

If  Bunker  Hill  Monument  is  mentioned  I  think  of  a  hot  day  and 
feel  weary.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  I  ascended  the  monument 
on  a  hot  day. 

If  a  person  describes  an  odor  foreign  to  my  sense  of  smell,  I  am 
sure  to  imagine  some  odor  even  though  it  may  not  be  the  right  one. 


[34] 


Mental  habits.  Persons  who  have  given  the  subject 
little  attention  are  inclined  to  think  that  mental  imagery 
is  largely  a  matter  of  chance.  Careful  observation  and  a 
record  of  one's  images  will,  however,  reveal  the  fact  that 
the  same  circumstance  or  word  often  brings  up  the  same 
image.  Sir  Francis  Galton  was  one  of  the  first  to  notice 
this  truth.  He  made  a  record  of  the  images  suggested 
by  a  list  of  words,  then  at  long  intervals  and  in  various 
surroundings  he  again  made  records  and  was  surprised  to 
find  that  in  a  large  proportion  of  cases  the  same  image 
was  suggested  whenever  the  corresponding  word  was  seen. 
In  a  similar  experiment  made  by  the  writer  upon  a  class 
of  college  students,  it  was  found  that  after  the  lapse  of 
a  month,  during  which  there  had  been  a  week's  vacation, 
nearly  one  half  of  the  students  had  the  same  images  that 
they  had  the  first  time.  In  most  cases  those  who  did  not 
record  the  same  image  thought  in  both  experiments  of 
some  recent  experience.  These  facts  suggest  that  the 
coming  of  images  into  the  mind  is  governed  by  law  rather 
than  chance. 

The  following  experiment  gives  a  very  clear  demon- 
stration of  the  principal  law  concerned.  If  pupils  look 
at  a  series  of  cards  with  a  letter  and  a  number  upon  each, 
and  some  moments  later  letters  of  the  alphabet  are  named 
with  the  request  that  numbers  be  written  next  them,  it  is 

[35] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

found  that  about  5  per  cent  will  write  the  numbers  that 
were  on  the  cards  with  the  letters.  If  a  letter  has  had 
the  same  number  beside  it  twice,  that  number  will  be  given 
in  about  10  per  cent  of  cases ;  while  if  the  same  number 
has  appeared  with  the  same  letter  three  times,  nearly  half 
of  those  taking  the  experiment  will  write  that  number 
when  the  letter  is  named.  These  experiments,  as  well  as 
many  others  that  have  been  performed  in  psychological 
laboratories,  demonstrate  beyond  question  that  the  coming 
of  images  into  the  mind  is  determined  by  the  laws  of  habit. 
The  primary  law  of  habit  is  the  law  of  repetition.  If 
two  impressions  have  been  received  together  or  in  imme- 
diate succession,  when  the  first  is  again  received  the  sec- 
ond will  be  reproduced  in  the  mind.  The  more  frequent 
the  association  of  the  two  impressions  the  more  surely 
will  this  be  the  case.  In  the  experiment  previously  named, 
if  a  letter  has  been  associated  once  with  one  number  and 
three  times  with  another,  the  latter  is  reproduced  in  a 
much  larger  percentage  of  cases.  Frequency  of  repetition 
is  by  far  the  most  important  law  influencing  imagery.  But 
there  are  several  important  modifications  or  variations  of 
this  law.  (i)  If  a  single  experience  in  certain  circum- 
stances has  produced  a  deep  impression  because  of  the 
emotion  aroused  or  because  of  effort  associated  with  it, 
it  may  have  a  more  lasting  effect  than  several  associations 
with  something  else  that  were  of  slight  intensity.  (2)  First 
impressions  are  nearly  always  stronger  than  later  ones. 
(3)  Experiences  that  have  been  recently  associated  make 
a  stronger  impression,  and  one  more  surely  recalls  the 
other,  than  when  a  longer  time  has  elapsed.  Anyone 
who  will  record  the  images  aroused  by  certain  words  and 
situations  will  usually  be  able  to  determine  why  those 

[36] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

images  came  rather  than  others  that  had  been  associated 
with  the  same  words  or  circumstances. 

If  the  image  that  comes  does  not  seem  to  be  the  re- 
sult of  repetition,  intensity,  or  recency,  a  more  careful 
study  of  the  preceding  and  associated  states  of  mind  will 
frequently  show  that  the  coming  of  certain  images  was 
prepared  for  by  several  experiences  or  by  purposes  that 
one  was  seeking  to  realize.  Often  the  image  that  seems 
to  be  aroused  by  a  word  is  really  not  so  much  suggested 
by  the  word  itself  as  by  preceding  words  and  the  accom- 
panying thought.  Notice  the  image  suggested  by  the  word 
in  italics  in  the  following  sentence.  "  By  the  side  of  the 
road,  in  a  swampy  place  among  the  grass  and  surrounded 
by  other  flowers,  were  beautiful  flags"  Now  notice  the 
image  suggested  by  the  word  in  italics  in  this  sentence : 
11  As  they  approached  the  town  the  sound  of  a  brass  band 
and  of  firecrackers  came  to  their  ears,  and  soon  they 
caught  sight  of  flags  waving  in  the  breeze." 

Not  only  do  the  laws  of  habit  determine  what  mental 
images  shall  be  brought  into  the  mind  but  they  have  a 
very  great^  influence  upon  the  way  in  which  images  are 
combined  to  form  a  new  picture.  This  is  illustrated  by 
the  following  observation  : 

Whenever  I  read  a  storybook  I  prefer  few  or  no  pictures  in 
it,  as  it  seems  more  real  to  me  to  image  the  characters  and 
places.  Almost  always  they  are  ones  with  which  I  am  acquainted, 
but  they  weave  themselves  into  the  story  without  my  realizing 
it  at  first.  When  anyone  tells  me  of  a  certain  place,  a  building, 
a  room,  or  the  like,  I  form  a  mental  picture  from  the  descrip- 
tion. That  image  stays  until  I  actually  see  the  place.  Always 
afterward  in  thinking  of  it  my  own  first  image  comes  to  me 
before  the  right  one. 

[37] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

This  expresses  what  is  generally  true.  We  not  only 
form  our  images  according  to  laws  of  habit  but  we  arrange 
them  in  accordance  with  scenes  with  which  we  are  familiar, 
and  our  subsequent  imaging  is  influenced  by  these  earlier 
arrangements.  This  truth  applies  not  only  to  reproduc- 
tive and  constructive  imagination  but  also  to  creative.  A 
novelist  uses  images  that  are  familiar  to  him  and  con- 
structs plots  similar  to  those  in  books  that  he  has  read, 
and  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  for  him  to  make  his  second 
book  entirely  different  from  the  first.  In  a  similar  way 
the  poet  and  the  artist  create  in  accordance  with  models 
familiar  to  them ;  and  the  influence  of  habit  is  further 
shown  in  the  similarity  of  their  creations. 

Associations  of  similarity  and  contrast.  Sometimes 
mental  images  seem  to  come  contrary  to,  rather  than  in 
accordance  with,  the  laws  of  habit.  For  example,  we  see 
a  certain  person  and  immediately  think  of  another  person  a 
thousand  miles  away  whom  we  have  never  seen  or  thought 
of  in  connection  with  the  first.  It  would  seem  as  if  the 
image  of  the  second  person  could  not  have  been  brought 
to  our  minds  by  any  law  of  habit.  It  will  usually  be  found 
in  such  cases  that  the  two  persons  resemble  each  other, 
and  it  may  be  said  that  the  first  suggests  the  second  in 
accordance  with  the  law  of  similarity.  This  law  doubtless 
plays  a  large  part  in  our  mental  life  and  gives  great  variety 
to  our  imaginative  activity.  If  we  never  formed  any  image 
except  as  it  was  aroused  in  connection  with  something 
which  preceded  or  accompanied  the  original  experience, 
our  mental  representations  would  be  largely  of  a  reminis- 
cent character.  Whatever  variety  there  was  would  be  due 
to  variety  of  objective  experiences  rather  than  to  any  varia- 
tion of  mental  activity.  If  we  always  saw  a  certain  man  on 

[38] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

horseback  in  the  same  place,  whenever  that  man  was  called 
to  mind  we  should  think  of  the  horse  and  the  surroundings 
in  which  they  were  both  seen  ;  but  if  we  also  saw  him  occa- 
sionally in  an  automobile  and  at  other  times  in  a  train,  then 
there  is  a  possibility  of  variety  in  our  thought  in  connec- 
tion with  him.  The  image  that  comes  will  be  determined 
by  the  frequency,  recency,  and  intensity  of  association  of 
that  man  with  the  horse,  the  automobile,  or  the  train. 

Associations  of  similarity,  however,  permit  of  much 
greater  freedom  and  variety  than  in  the  above  case.  When 
we  see  this  man  we  may  think  of  some  other  man  with 
the  same  make  of  automobile  or  the  same  sort  of  nose 
or  disposition,  and  thus  may  bring  into  association  experi- 
ences connected  not  only  with  that  particular  man  but 
with  many  other  persons,  objects,  places,  and  qualities. 

If  we  look  closely  into  these  associations  by  similarity 
we  shall  find,  however,  that  they  do  not  represent  a  dis- 
tinct law  opposing  that  of  contiguity,  but  rather  a  special 
form  of  the  law  of  repetition  or  habit.  If  a  man  has  a 
very  distinctive  nose,  the  rest  of  his  face  may  be  covered, 
and  yet  you  may  recognize  him.  This  is  clearly  in  accord- 
ance with  the  law  of  habit.  Suppose  another  man  has  a 
similar  nose,  and  you  concentrate  your  attention  upon  that 
feature,  excluding  from  notice  other  portions  of  his  face. 
It  will  not  be  strange  if  the  features  most  frequently  asso- 
ciated with  that  nose  come  to  mind,  and  thus  the  man  at 
whom  you  are  looking  suggests  an  individual  who  has 
never  before  been  associated  with  him  in  your  mind.  If 
we  regard  similarity  as  consisting  of  partial  identity,  then 
it  is  easy  to  see  how,  by  concentrating  attention  upon  one 
characteristic  of  a  person  or  an  object,  we  may,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  law  of  habit,  image  something  similar  to 

[39] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

the  present  object  that  has  been  perceived  at  a  different 
time  and  place.  Association  by  similarity  is,  therefore,  in 
accordance  with  the  fundamental  law  of  habit ;  but  it  dif- 
fers from  the  usual  working  of  that  law  in  that  attention 
makes  prominent  a  part  or  phase  of  an  experience,  and 
thus  similar  parts  or  phases  of  experiences  remote  in  time 
and  place  are  brought  to  mind.  It  is  because  of  such  asso- 
ciations by  similarity  that  we  are  able  to  bring  order  out 
of  confusion,  putting  together  in  our  minds  things  that 
are  similar  but  are  objectively  experienced  at  different 
1  times  and  under  different  circumstances.  This  makes 
classification  possible  and  also  the  activities  of  inference 
and  reasoning,  which  are  always  based  upon  similarity. 

There  is  another  variation  of  the  law  of  association 
worth  noting.  When  we  see  an  exceedingly  tall  man, 
instead  of  thinking  of  another  tall  man  we  may  think  of 
one  who  is  very  short.  Such  associations  of  contrast  are 
in  reality  little  more  than  disguised  forms  of  associations 
of  similarity.  A  very  tall  man  and  a  very  short  one  are 
compared  as  to  the  same  characteristic,  —  height,  —  and 
they  are  similar  in  that  both  vary  from  the  usual  type. 
Such  associations  play  a  large  part  in  our  thinking,  for 
reasons  additional  to  those  supplied  by  the  law  of  similarity. 
We  become  most  distinctly  aware  of  a  given  quality  when 
it  is  presented  to  us  with  much  variation.  We  realize 
more  keenly  what  a  thing  is  by  contrasting  it  with  what 
it  is  not.  We  can  only  form  an  idea  of  a  large  horse  by 
contrasting  it  with  a  small  one.  It  is  partially  for  this 
reason  that  contrasts  play  such  an  effective  part  in  all  our 
thinking. 

Other  lazvs  than  those  of  habit  and  association.  It  is 
evident  from  the  preceding  discussion  that  the  laws  of 

[40] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

repetition,  intensity,  recency,  similarity,  and  contrast  are 
the  principal  known  laws  by  which  imaginative  activity  is 
explained.  Jt  has  been  claimed  that  no  other  laws  are 
needed.  This  may  be  true,  yet  it  seems  strange  that  the 
most  variable  of  mental  operations — imagination — should 
be  based  upon  the  fixed  laws  of  habit.  Nor  does  it  seem 
true  that  imaginative  people  are  the  ones  with  the  most 
firmly  established  habits  of  thought,  but  quite  the  oppo- 
site. We  know,  however,  that  fixed  laws  give  variable 
results,  as  in  the  case  of  the  weather ;  and  this  may  well 
be  true  of  the  imagination,  where  the  conditions  are  even 
more  obscure  than  those  determining  atmospheric  changes. 

Our  tendencies  to  image  as  well  as  to  act  are  not  all 
of  equal  strength  at  birth,  hence  a  child  may  quickly  learn 
to  image  food  when  he  hears  certain  sounds  or  sees  cer- 
tain objects  or  movements,  but  be  very  slow  in  learning 
to  image  the  sound  associated  with  a  certain  letter.  In 
other  words,  instinctive  tendencies  as  well  as  the  laws  of 
habit  influence  the  flow  of  mental  imagery. 

The  physiological  condition  which  is  closely  associated 
with  an  instinctive  action  may  also  be  an  important  influ- 
ence. For  example,  when  one  is  hungry,  images  of  food 
are  much  more  easily  suggested  to  him  than  at  other  times. 
In  a  slightly  weakened  bodily  state,  dangers  are  imagined 
much  more  readily  than  when  one  is  strong  and  vigorous. 
Fatigue  or  drugs  may  also  greatly  modify  imagery. 

All  persons  have  the  same  instincts  by  which  their 
images  are  directed  but  not  in  the  same  degree,  hence 
imagination  is  greatly  influenced  by  native  individual  dif- 
ferences in  special  lines.  A  series  of  rhythmical  sounds  is 
imaged  more  readily  by  all  persons  than  a  series  of  non- 
rhythmical  sounds,  but  a  child  with  a  "  musical  ear  "  may 

[41] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

reproduce  a  series  of  musical  phrases  after  one  hearing 
better  than  will  another  after  a  dozen  repetitions. 

Since  individuals  thus  differ  in  natural  tendencies  it  is 
not  strange  that  persons  who  have  had  the  same  experi- 
ences and  should  seemingly,  according  to  the  laws  of  habit, 
form  the  same  images,  do,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  show  great 
individual  differences  in  their  imagery  and  in  their  con- 
structive and  creative  imagination  because  of  differences 
in  intensity  of  the  same  sensations  and  images.  Imagina- 
tion works  according  to  the  same  general  laws  in  all  per- 
sons, but  one  must  know  the  natural  tendencies  and  the 
environment,  the  history  and  the  recent'  experiences  of 
the  individual,  in  order  to  predict  what  images  will  be 
brought  to  his  mind  under  certain  circumstances.  With 
some  persons  this  may  be  comparatively  easy,  while  with 
others  we  cannot  tell  even  after  a  long  acquaintance  just 
what  they  will  do  or  think  when  certain  things  happen. 

In  the  case  of  such  persons,  especially  those  who  are 
inventive  or  creative  in  scientific  or  artistic  lines,  images 
and  ideas  seem  to  generate  spontaneously.  Even  in  our 
own  minds  images  appear  without  our  being  able  to  dis- 
cover their  progenitors  or  associates.  Careful  study,  how- 
ever, of  both  dream  and  waking  imagery  shows  that,  in 
general,  the  probable  origin  of  such  ideas  may  be  discov- 
ered by  sufficient  study  of  the  conditions  and  by  probing 
into  the  past  experiences  of  the  individual.  The  seem- 
ingly original  ideas  of  each  person  accord  with  his  usual 
modes  of  thinking,  whether  it  be  in  scientific,  musical, 
artistic,  or  practical  lines. 

Besides  the  laws  already  mentioned  there  are  two  others 
that  must  be  recognized  as  general.  The  flow  of  imagery 
is  influenced  not  only  by  the  images  that  have  been  and 

[42] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

are  present  in  consciousness  but  also  in  a  special  degree 
by  purpose  or  intention.  The  kind  of  imaginative  activity 
produced  by  the  sight  of  triangles  depends  upon  whether 
we  are  expecting  to  construct  a  design  of  such  figures  or 
to  demonstrate  a  proposition  in  geometry. 

The  other  general  law  is  a  tendency,  conscious  and 
unconscious,  to  image  what  is  agreeable  or  pleasant.  In 
certain  moods  an  opposite  inclination  may  be  observed, 
and  sometimes  we  purposely  hold  in  mind  images  that 
are  disagreeable ;  but  in  the  main,  if  a  person  is  in  good 
health,  images  associated  with  agreeable  feelings  appear 
more  frequently  and  remain  longer  in  consciousness  than 
those  with  unpleasant  associations.  There  are,  perhaps, 
a  few  healthy  pessimists,  but  they  do  not  represent  the 
generality  of  mankind.  Usually  only  persons  who  are  not 
well  or  those  who  have  had  very  unpleasant  experiences 
dwell  long  upon  images  suggestive  of  past  and  future 
unhappiness. 

Generic  and  individual  images.  The  laws  of  habit  and 
of  economy  of  energy  both  tend  to  limit  the  variety  of 
images  that  one  forms.  In  accordance  with  the  laws  of 
habit  one  who  has  seen  many  kinds  of  horses  will  not 
think  of  all  of  them  but  of  the  kind  he  has  seen  most 
often,  most  recently,  or  with  which  he  has  the  most 
intense  association.  He  might  think  of  several  kinds, 
one  after  another,  in  accordance  with  these  laws,  but  it 
would  be  a  waste  of  time  and  would  probably  interfere 
with  his  mental  operations  more  than  it  would  help,  in 
most  cases. 

In  ordinary  conversation  or  reading,  a  multiplicity  of 
images  for  each  object  named  would  be  a  hindrance. 
Many  persons,  perhaps  unconsciously,  select  one  image 

[43] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

to  represent  the  class  of  objects  indicated  by  a  word.  For 
instance,  "  horse  "  always  calls  up  in  the  mind  of  one  girl 
the  image  of  a  black  driving  horse,  and  this  serves  to 
give  reality  to  the  thought,  although  she  may  realize 
clearly  that  the  horse  under  discussion  is  entirely  different 
from  the  one  imaged. 

The  following  observation  of  a  normal  student  is  typical : 

I  find  that  when  words  like  "  dog,"  "  cat,"  "  desk,"  "  pen- 
cil," "  school,"  and  the  like  are  mentioned  I  immediately  image 
the  one  with  which  I  am  most  familiar,  then  generally,  if  I  let 
my  mind  go,  I  think  of  some  less  familiar  and  usually  recall 
incidents  connected  with  them. 

There  are  two  principal  ways  in  which  such  typical 
images  are  formed  and  used,  and  by  the  laws  of  associa- 
tion such  standard  images  play  an  important  part  in  mental 
operations.  In  the  minds  of  some  the  image  most  used 
is  that  of  an  individual  specimen,  while  in  other  cases 
no  particular  individual  is  represented  but  there  is  a  more 
or  less  generalized  image  involving  common  characteris- 
tics of  the  class.  To  one  person  "tree"  always  calls  up 
the  image  of  a  particular  elm  tree  growing  in  front  of  her 
house,  while  to  another  it  brings  only  the  image  of  the 
general  form  of  a  tree  with  trunk  and  branches.  There 
is  considerable  variation  in  the  way  in  which  these  two 
types  of  images  are  used.  Generally,  however,  people  are 
fairly  constant  in  their  typical  modes  of  thinking.  If, 
when  a  tree  is  mentioned,  it  is  described  as  an  oak  tree 
just  coming  into  leaf,  the  person  with  a  generic  image  of 
a  tree  modifies  it  slightly  into  the  characteristic  form  of 
an  oak  but  does  not  form  a  detailed  picture  of  any  special 
one,  while  the  person  who  usually  forms  an  image  of  an 

[44] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

individual  tree  of  the  kind  of  tree  described  promptly  sub- 
stitutes a  fairly  definite  image  and  in  some  instances  will 
think  of  a  particular  specimen.  It  seems  likely  that  the 
person  who  makes  use  of  the  generic  image  will  be  able 
to  think  more  rapidly  and  freely  than  the  one  who  deals 
with  special  images,  but  that  the  latter  will  have  a  greater 
feeling  of  reality  in  connection  with  his  images. 

EXERCISES 

1.  The  effect  of  common  influences  upon  a  group  of  persons  may 
be  indicated  by  asking  a  company  of  people  to  write  the  following 
names:  (i)  a  part  of  speech,  (2)  a  flower,  (3)  an  animal,  (4)  a  noted 
character  in  history.    In  a  group  of  twenty  or  more  persons  it  will 
be  found  that  75  per  cent  of  them  write  one  of  two  or  three  names. 

2.  A  group  of  people  may  be  asked  to  solve  mentally  the  follow- 
ing problem  :  "  A  man  bought  twenty  horses  at  $  I  oo  each  and  forty 
cows  at  $25  each.    How  much  did  they  cost?  "  Great  individual  dif- 
ferences will  be  found  as  to  the  exact  character  and  arrangement  of 
the  images  formed  and  modes  of  procedure  followed  by  each  person 
in  solving  the  problem.    If  these  do  not  appear  at  once  such  ques- 
tions as  the  following  will  bring  them  out :  Did  you  image  the  ani- 
mals?  What  was  the  color?    How  were  they  grouped?    Did  you 
image  the  numbers  as  figures  or  as  auditory  or  visual  words  ?   Were 
the  numbers  represented  as  seen  on  paper  or  on  the  board  and  how 
were  they  arranged  ? 

3.  A  list  of  words  such  as  "house,"  "captain,"  "tree,"  "school," 
may  be  given,  and  each  individual  may  describe  the  images  they 
bring  to  his  mind  and  try  to  explain  by  the  laws  governing  mental 
imagery  just  why  those  images  rather  than  others  came. 

4.  Discuss  the  probable  origin  of  various  so-called  original  or 
spontaneous  ideas  of  sleeping  or  waking  moments. 

5.  Illustrate  the  fact  that  some  persons  use  a  certain  kind  of 
imagery  much  more  than  any  other. 

[45] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

6.  Discuss  the  relative  advantages  of  specific,  or  individual,  as 
compared  with  generic,  or  class,  images. 

7.  Individual  comments  on  the  following  observations  will  prob- 
ably prove  interesting  and  instructive. 

When  you  asked  us  to  think  of  a  day's  outing  I  immediately  pic- 
tured to  myself  everything  connected  with  a  drive  from  Northfield, 
Massachusetts,  to  Forest  Lake  in  Winchester,  New  Hampshire.  I 
had  a  very  clear  and  distinct  visual  image  of  the  way  the  campus  of 
the  Northfield  Seminary  looked  that  morning,  of  the  horse  and  car- 
riage, of  the  road,  of  Winchester,  of  the  lake,  and  of  the  girls  with 
whom  I  went.  I  could  picture  our  lunch  and  could  tell  exactly  what 
kind  of  sandwiches,  cake,  cookies,  pickles,  etc.  we  had.  When  you 
told  us  to  write  I  began  to  think  of  words  to  describe  my  mental 
picture.  Before  that  I  had  no  thought  of  the  words. 

Before  I  came  here  to  school  I  had  imagined  how  my  room  would 
.  look  and  I  was  somewhat  disappointed,  as  I  had  pictured  a  single 
room  and  I  found  I  was  to  have  a  double  one.  This  year  I  knew 
which  room  I  was  to  have,  and  I  had  the  arrangement  of  furniture 
and  pictures  all  visualized  nearly  as  I  afterward  arranged  them. 

Association  plays  an  important  part  in  my  images  of  past  events. 
For  instance,  when  I  thought  of  our  drive  to  Forest  Lake  and  of  the 
girls  with  whom  I  went,  I  thought  of  a  party  I  attended  with  those 
same  girls,  then  of  a  walk  I  took  with  one  of  them,  then  of  her  room- 
mate and  of  Smith  College.  The  thought  of  Smith  College  brought 
up  the  thought  of  our  head  waitress  who  attended  Wellesley  College, 
and  so  on  through  a  long  list  of  events. 

If  reading  a  story,  I  picture  the  characters,  place,  and  time.  When 
listening  to  a  description  I  have  a  visual  image  of  the  place  being  de- 
scribed. Usually  it  is  connected  with  something  similar  that  I  have  seen. 

The  visual  image  of  a  beautiful  landscape  or  sunset  stays  in  my 
mind  sometimes  for  years. 

I  cannot  so  easily  call  up  auditory  images.  I  have  heard  and  en- 
joyed beautiful  music  many  times,  but  I  cannot  call  up  a  very  dis- 
tinct auditory  image  of  any  of  it. 

All  through  the  years  I  have  been  going  to  school  I  find  that  a 
great  deal  of  my  learning  has  come  through  the  power  of  imagina- 
tion. In  counting  from  one  to  one  hundred  I  have  a  definite  arrange- 
ment of  the  numbers.  They  appear  to  start  and  go  in  a  line  upwards 

[46] 


MENTAL  LAWS  AND  IMAGINATION 

from  one  to  ten,  then  they  shoot  off  and  go  crosswise  by  tens  up 
to  one  hundred.  I  have  had  this  image  of  counting  ever  since  I  can 
remember  and  was  surprised  to  find  that  other  people  had  different 
arrangements. 

Regarding  the  days  of  the  week  I  have  a  visual  image  of  the 
abbreviations  of  the  names  following  one  right  after  the  other,  start- 
ing with  Mon.  If  a  day  is  mentioned,  I  can  immediately  see  it  in 
a  certain  place.  I  also  have  a  definite  arrangement  in  my  mind  of 
the  months  of  the  year  and  of  the  hours  in  the  day  and  night. 

In  studying  history  and  especially  geography  I  always  imagine 
the  location  of  every  place  that  is  mentioned  and  do  not  feel  satisfied 
to  go  on  reading  until  I  have  found  a  location  on  the  map  in  my 
mind. 

I  find  that  since  we  have  been  studying  Europe  I  have  a  mental 
picture  of  the  map  of  that  continent  that  is  hanging  on  the  wall  in 
Miss  A.'s  room,  and  every  time  anything  is  mentioned  concerning 
Europe  my  mind  immediately  travels  to  that  particular  map. 

Whenever  the  church  bell  rings  I  have  an  image  of  the  church 
steeple  as  the  source  of  the  sound,  and  when  the  fire  alarm  rings  I 
immediately  see  a  picture  of  the  fire  station. 


[47] 


CHAPTER  V 
IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 

Imaging  and  locating  experiences.  When  asked  to 
/observe  closely  their  memory  processes  most  people  say 
that  images  play  an  important  part,  and  many  of  them 
think  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  remember  without 
imaging  objects  and  events,  or  at  least  the  words  naming 
and  describing  them.  They  are  only  partly  right.  A  class 
was  shown  a  dozen  objects  in  a  box  and  later  asked  to  write 
a  description  of  them.  Most  of  them  reported  that  they 
held  in  mind  a  visual  image  of  how  the  objects  in  the 
box  looked  and  wrote  the  description  from  that.  When 
asked  a  few  days  later  to  write  again  what  they  had  seen 
in  the  box,  most  of  them  still  imaged  the  appearance  of 
the  objects  in  the  box,  while  some  imaged  the  words  that 
they  had  written  previously,  and  others  remembered  in 
various  ways  without  vivid  and  detailed  images. 

Many  persons  believe  that  memory  is  made  possible  and 
accurate  by  the  power  to  image  vividly,  and  in  instances 
like  the  following  this  is  perhaps  true.  One  normal  stu- 
dent says : 

In  language  work  we  were  required  to  write  a  paper  on  our 
observation  lesson.  I  noticed  that  I  pictured  the  room,  the  work 
on  the  board,  the  pupils,  and  the  conversation  very  vividly.  With 
these  images  before  me  I  was  able  to  write  about  the  lesson. 
In  the  geography  class  we  took  up  sun  work.  In  order  to  get 
the  location  of  the  sun,  I  pictured  it  as  I  had  seen  it  at  different 
times  in  the  year. 

[48] 


IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 

Another  student  says : 

Quotations  that  I  learned  in  grammar  school  I  can  see  now 
in  my  mind,  with  the  exact  location  on  the  page,  the  length,  and, 
to  a  great  extent,  the  punctuation.  This  is  a  great  help  to 
memory  I  have  found,  especially  in  writing  a  quotation. 

Doubtless  the  majority  of  people  are  greatly  aided  in 
memory  by  vivid  images,  and  a  few  can  depend  upon 
them  almost  as  they  would  upon  fresh  perceptions ;  but 
it  is  probable  that  in  most  cases  imag£&jk>  not  contribute 
greatly  to  accuracy  of  memory,  although  they  do  make 
what  is  remembered  more  vivid  and  interesting.  In  the 
box  experiment  previously  mentioned  there  was  a  pen,  a 
spoon,  and  a  knife,  but  no  pencil  or  fork.  Many  persons 
evidently  had  the  image  of  a  pencil  and1  of  a  fork  sug- 
gested to  them  by  the  other  objects.  A  few  days  later, 
when  questioned  regarding  the  contents  of  the  box,  sev- 
eral of  them  recalled  an  image  of  the  pencil  and  of  the 
fork  that  they  had  formed  when  looking  at  the  other 
objects,  and  in  some  instances  were  sure  that  they  had 
seen  there  a  pencil  of  a  certain  color  and  a  fork  with  a 
certain  number  of  tines. 

It  is  evident  from  sikh  cases  as  this  that  a  tendency 
to  vivid  imagery  may  lead  as  readily  to  false  as  to  true 
memory.  The  essential  element  in  memory  is  not  that 
objects  and  events  shall  be  vividly  imaged,  but  that  they 
shall  be  properly  located  with  relation  to  each  other  and 
in  relation  to  those  associated  with  them  at  a  particular 
time.  Vividness  of  imagery  may  be  of  little  help  in  accu- 
racy of  location,  but  some  imagery  is  often  necessary  in 
order  to  get  the  right  associations  in  memory.  With 
many  persons  distinct  images  of  the  space  relations  of 
objects  are  of  great  help. 

[49] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

People  who  form  vivid  images  freely  in  response  to  a 
suggestion  may  easily  be  led  into  mistaken  memories. 
For  instance,  one  sees  or  hears  a  person  make  certain 
movements,  forms  vivid  images  of  what  the  person  is 
probably  doing,  and  may  later,  in  all  good  faith,  report 
something  entirely  false  regarding  what  occurred.  In 
order  that  vividness  of  imagery  may  not  subject  one  to 
error  there  should  be  a  frequent  comparison  of  images 
with  fresh  perceptions,  and  care  exercised  that  images  are 
accurate  as  well  as  vivid.  The  following  is  a  typical  in- 
stance of  the  way  in  which  memory  may  be  falsified  by 
the  imagination  : 

Early  this  morning  I  had  to  write  on  creative  imagination. 
I  imagined  it  was  done  and  how  it  looked,  and  if  I  had  not 
heard  the  bell  I  should  have  gone  to  sleep  again  without  writing 
my  paper,  because  I  thought  I  had  written  it 

Constructive  imagination  and  memory.  The  essential 
truths  regarding  the  use  of  constructive  imagination  and 
memory  are  indicated  by  the  following  quotation : 

In  reading  or  studying,  just  so  long  as  I  can  construct  an 
image  for  each  word,  I  can  understand  and  reproduce  what  I 
read,  but  as  soon  as  the  subject  matter  becomes  so  complex  or 
so  foreign  to  all  my  former  experiences  that  I  can  no  longer 
picture  it  to  myself,  I  cannot  remember  a  word  of  what  I  have 
read  either  once  or  a  number  of  times. 

Most  students  are  greatly  helped  by  using  their  con- 
structive imagination  not  only  in  studying  such  subjects 
as  history  and  geography  but  also  in  memorizing  poetry 
and  other  literary  selections.  By  means  of  the  images 
that  they  form  they  recall  the  words  much  more  quickly. 
Students  of  another  type,  instead  of  imaging  that  for 

[So] 


IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 

which  the  words  stand,  first  image  the  words  themselves 
and  then  perhaps  form  some  images  corresponding  to 
their  meaning. 

Another  method  less  common,  except  in  the  case  of 
mature  students,  is  that  of  forming  only  a  few  distinct 
images  of  suggestive  words,  or  of  the  most  significant 
elements  of  a  situation,  in  getting  the  meaning  of  what 
is  studied. 

Vividness  in  the  use  of  constructive  imagination  in 
reading  and  studying  renders  the  subject  matter  much 
more  interesting  and  impressive,  but  it  does  not  neces- 
sarily help  in  accuracy  of  reproduction.  To  many  people 
reading  without  vividly  constructing  would  be  like  going 
through  the  motions  of  eating  without  experiencing  any 
taste  sensation.  It  is  doubtless  true,  however,  that  very 
few  people  form  images  exactly  in  accordance  with  de- 
scriptions. They  image  in  detail,  according  to  their  own 
pleasure  or  habit,  what  is  mentioned  or  described  only  in 
general  terms.  These  images  may  vary  greatly  from  those 
in  the  mind  of  the  writer  or  speaker  and  from  the  reality. 
This  is  especially  true  of  images  of  persons.  Many  peo- 
ple form  very  distinct  images  of  persons  of  whom  they 
hear,  which  are  unwarranted  by  any  description  which  has 
been  given.  One  young  lady  found  it  almost  impossible 
to  enjoy  a  moving-picture  dramatization  of  "  Little  Lord 
Fauntleroy  "  because  the  mother  of  Cedric  was  so  differ- 
ent in  features  and  complexion  from  what  she  had  imag- 
ined. Many  people  who  seem  to  have  very  unreliable 
memories  are  subject  to  errors  not  so  much  because  they 
cannot  reproduce  what  they  have  heard  as  because  they 
construct  images  varying  materially  from  those  naturally 
suggested  by  the  words.  To  this  inaccuracy  of  the 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

constructive  imagination  rather  than  to  lack  of  memory 
may  be  ascribed  many  of  the  mistakes  in  reproducing 
what  has  been  told. 

Conflict  of  memory  and  creative  imagination.  It  is  not 
only  because  constructive  imagination  is  inaccurate  but 
because  there  is  a  strong  tendency  to  the  use  of  creative 
imagination  that  errors  occur  in  repeating  what  one  has 
been  told  or  has  read.  There  is  a  decided  inclination  to 
image  that  which  is  agreeable  to  us.  Hence  in  listening 
or  reading  one  may  make  little  effort  to  construct  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  words  used,  but  additional  images  are 
brought  to  mind,  and  these  are  combined  in  agreeable  or 
desired  ways  with  those  naturally  suggested  by  the  words 
heard  or  seen.  Afterward,  in  attempting  to  repeat  the 
description  or  story,  these  products  of  creative  imagination 
are  accurately  reproduced,  but  the  exact  truth  is  not  told. 

This  tendency  of  creative  imagination  to  prevent  accu- 
racy of  memory  is  not  confined  to  what  one  has  read  or 
heard  but  applies  also  to  one's  memory  of  his  own  experi- 
ences. A  man  who  frequently  told  an  incident  of  his  own 
boyhood  to  Sunday-school  children,  in  order  to  give  point 
to  some  moral  lesson,  became  conscious  after  a  while  of  the 
fact  that  he  was  not  telling  the  story  as  he  had  formerly 
told  it.  The  desire  to  make  certain  truths  prominent  had 
led  him  to  modify  unconsciously  his  images  of  what  had 
really  occurred  in  his  boyhood. 

Very  few  people  can  report  correctly  any  experience 
that  is  at  all  exciting.  They  recall  only  a  few  vivid 
images  of  what  actually  occurred.  These  images  suggest 
what,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  would  be  associated 
with  them,  and  creative  imagination  quickly  reproduces  a 
whole  scene.  Desire  and  purpose  so  influence  creative 

[52] 


IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 

imagination  that  one's  account  of  his  own  adventures  is 
likely  to  be  much  more  favorable  to  him  than  an  accurate 
description  would  be. 

So  frequently  is  creative  imagination  opposed  to  accuracy 
of  memory  that  unreliability  in  memory  is  often  ascribed 
to  a  too  active  imagination,  and  imagination  is  often  sup- 
posed to  be  necessarily  concerned  with  what  is  not  true. 
This  latter  supposition  is  of  course  entirely  unwarranted, 
and  the  possession  of  a  vivid  imagination  does  not  neces- 
sarily render  memory  inaccurate.  One  may  picture  as 
vividly  as  he  pleases  without  being  led  into  error,  provid- 
ing that  he  will  at  the  same  time  carefully  distinguish 
between  what  actually  occurred  or  was  reported  to  him 
and  what  he  pictures  as  the  possible,  probable,  or  desired 
circumstances. 

Special  varieties  of  images  as  aids  to  memory.  Some 
persons  in  order  to  remember  a  name  need  to  hear  it  pro- 
nounced repeatedly,  others  must  see  it  distinctly  written 
or  printed,  and  still  others  find  it  necessary  to  speak  or 
write  it  themselves.  Such  facts  as  these  have  led  to  much 
discussion  with  regard  to  individual  types  of  images  and 
the  use  of  imagery  in  memorizing.  Some  individuals  re- 
member best  what  they  see,  others  what  they  hear,  and 
others  those  things  in  which  their  own  movements  are 
involved. 

Where  such  tendencies  are  very  pronounced  it  would 
seem  that  various  methods  of  teaching  and  studying  would 
be  most  effective  according  as  they  harmonized  with  the 
type  of  imagery  of  individual  students.  The  question  of 
which  method  to  use  seems  to  be  most  prominent  in 
connection  with  memorizing  lists  of  names  and  in  learn- 
ing to  spell.  Visual  methods  of  teaching  are  now  very  » 

[53] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

common,  and  it  is  claimed  that  on  this  account  those  who 
have  a  strong  tendency  to  the  use  of  auditory  or  motor 
images  are  placed  at  a  disadvantage.  This  is  probably 
true,  but  a  long  series  of  experiments  have  not  yet  evolved 
accurate  means  of  determining  just  how  prominent  the 
tendency  is  in  any  particular  individual  to  use  a  certain 
type  of  imagery. 

The  matter  is  much  more  complicated  than  at  first 
seems  to  be  the  case.  If  you  test  a  group  of  individuals 
by  showing  them  a  list  of  words,  then  by  speaking  an- 
other list  of  words,  you  cannot  be  at  all  sure  that  they 
will  remember  the  words  in  corresponding  images.  If  a 
person  has  a  strong  tendency  to  auditory  imagery,  when 
he  sees  a  word  he  will  form  an  image  of  how  it  would 
sound,  and  when  he  recalls  it  the  sound  rather  than  the 
visual  appearance  comes  to  his  mind.  In  a  similar  way 
a  person  with  the  visual  type  of  imagery  will  picture  the 
appearance  of  words  that  he  hears  and  will  then  remem- 
ber those  visual  images  rather  than  his  auditory  impres- 
sions. The  person  with  the  motor  type  of  imagery  makes 
movements  and  images  of  movements  when  he  receives 
auditory  or  visual  impressions,  which  aid  him  in  his  future 
recollections.  It  is  found  that  the  average  number  of 
words  reproduced  by  a  class  is  usually  increased  by  having 
them  seen,  heard,  and  spoken  or  written,  but  this  does 
not  necessarily  mean  that  each  individual  can  remember 
better  that  which  appeals  to  several  senses  than  what  is 
repeatedly  impressed  upon  one.  Such  a  procedure  gives 
persons  of  all  types  of  imagery  a  'chance  to  learn  through 
the  kind  of  impressions  they  prefer.  Hence  there  are 
fewer  failures.  The  fact  remains,  however,  that  persons 
who  have  a  strong  tendency  to  one  type  of  imagery  are 

[54] 


IMAGINATION  AND  MEMORY 

frequently  confused  more  than  they  are  aided  by  the 
presentation  of  either  single  words  or  selections  in  several 
ways.  The  visualizer  may  learn  more  quickly  by  reading  a 
selection  twice  than  by  reading  it  once  and  hearing  it  once 
and  reading  aloud  or  writing  it  once,  and  similar  facts 
hold  true  for  those  of  the  auditory  type. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Individual  reports  should  be  given  as  to  the  part  that  images 
play,  (i)  in  remembering  what  one  has  experienced,  (2)  in  learning 
and  recalling  words,  figures,  or  diagrams. 

2.  Reports  should  also  be  given  as  to  the  value  of  constructive 
imagination  in  remembering  what  is  read  or  heard. 

3.  To  what  extent  does  the  tendency  to  create  pictures  that  are 
agreeable  to  oneself  interfere  with  accurate  memory? 

4.  Report  upon  the  kind  of  sensations  and  images  that  are  most 
effective  for  you  in  memorizing.   Do  you  get  most  help  from  repeatedly 
seeing,  hearing,  or  speaking  words  or  from  forming  the  correspond- 
ing images  ? 


[55] 


CHAPTER  VI 
FEELING  AND  IMAGINATION 

Images  and  sensory  feelings.  The  following  is  a  typical 
instance  of  feeling  aroused  by  mental  images : 

When  a  sail  that  I  took  last  summer  was  mentioned,  I  imme- 
diately felt  the  motion  of  the  boat  and  had  a  mental  picture  of 
the  view  of  the  harbor.  When  I  think  of  the  beautiful  residence 
of  Mrs.  F.,  especially  on  a  warm  sultry  day,  I  form  a  mental 
picture  of  the  pure  white  marble  colonial  mansion,  with  its 
splendid  columns,  and  the  great  smooth  lawn  in  front  that 
extends  to  a  high  stone  wall  against  which  I  can  hear  the  dash- 
ing of  the  waves,  and  I  feel  refreshed  and  in  a  very  quiet, 
peaceful  mood. 

Another  says :  "  When  I  read  an  interesting  book, 
images  are  formed  not  only  of  characters  and  scenes  but 
of  delicious  things  to  eat  and  of  lovely  odors,  such  as  the 
scent  of  roses." 

To  some  persons  the  memory  of  a  burn  seems  to  be 
actually  painful,  and  the  taste  image  of  certain  substances 
may  give  almost  as  intense  feelings  as  did  the  original 
taste  sensation.  Many  people  have  the  power  to  see  again 
with  the  eye  of  memory  beautiful  scenes  which  they  visited 
perhaps  years  ago.  A  few  persons  are  able  to  enjoy  re- 
peatedly in  retrospect  a  musical  treat  by  imaging  the 
music  that  they  have  heard.  To  reexperience  the  feelings 
accompanying  movements  by  imaging  the  movements  is 
not  at  all  unusual. 

[56] 


FEELING  AND  IMAGINATION 

In  such  instances  it  is  evident  that  the  images  not  only 
produce  feelings  similar  to  those  experienced  originally 
but  that  the  accompanying  mood  or  emotional  state  is 
reproduced  to  a  greater  or  less  extent.  Vividness  of  im- 
agery doubtless  has  a  much  more  important  effect  upon 
the  feelings  than  it  has  upon  the  efficiency  of  intellectual 
operations. 

There  seem  to  be  exceptions  to  the  general  rule  that 
images  produce  the  same  sort  of  feeling  as  accompanied 
the  original  sensations.  These  seeming  exceptions  are 
usually  the  result  of  contrast.  Reminiscences  of  hardships 
endured  may  give  considerable  pleasure  in  the  present, 
but  this  is  the  case  only  when  the  outcome  of  those  hard- 
ships was  a  happy  one  or  when  the  present  condition  is 
pleasantly  contrasted  with  the  former.  The  memory  of 
former  joys  is  pleasurable  unless  present  unhappiness  is 
contrasted  with  them  and  takes  the  dominant  place  in 
consciousness. 

Constructive  imagination  and  emotional  states.  The 
emotional  effects  produced  by  speakers  and  writers  upon 
their  audiences  and  readers  depend  very  largely  upon  their 
ability  to  arouse  images  associated  with  various  feelings 
of  a  certain  type  and  so  arranged  and  combined  as  to 
produce  a  distinct  and  unified  effect.  Hatred  for  a  per- 
son or  a  party  is  aroused  and  intensified  by  words  which 
suggest  unpleasant  images  and  evil  practices  in  connec- 
tion with  that  person  or  party,  such  as  "  schemes  of 
the  gang";  while  love,  admiration,  and  enthusiasm  for 
another  person,  party,  or  country  are  awakened  and 
developed  by  words  suggesting  mental  pictures  that  are 
agreeable  and  inspiring,  such  as  "  noble  deeds  of  loyal 
patriots." 

[57] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

A  skillful  appeal  to  the  imagination  may  produce  a 
much  more  distinct  and  intense  feeling  than  would  per- 
sonal acquaintance  with  the  person  and  the  incidents. 
Falstaff  is  a  delightfully  enjoyable  character  to  the  imagina- 
tion, but  in  actual  experience  such  an  individual  would 
probably  be  disgusting.  Although  his  grossness  is  sug- 
gested by  Shakespeare,  yet  his  amusing  qualities  are  made 
so  much  more  prominent  that  we  enjoy  picturing  his 
actions  and  words.  Little  Nell  arouses  the  deepest  feel- 
ings of  compassion,  but  many  of  those  who  are  most 
stirred  by  her  sorrows  as  portrayed  by  the  master  of  fic- 
tion, if  acquainted  with  such  a  girl  in  daily  life,  where 
the  pathetic  is  mingled  with  the  commonplace  and  even 
the  disagreeable,  would  fail  to  have  their  emotions  of  pity 
aroused.  It  is  because  great  writers  skillfully  select  and 
combine  images  so  as  to  produce  a  complex,  unified,  emo- 
tional state  of  a  certain  kind  in  their  readers  that  litera- 
ture is  often  more  interesting  and  enjoyable  than  real  life, 
and  imaginary  characters  are  more  influential  as  ideals 
than  real  persons  whose  attractiveness  is  lessened  by 
prosy  details. 

Mood  and  creative  imagination.  There  is  a  reverse 
side  to  the  phenomena  of  images  and  of  emotional  states 
which  is  especially  prominent  in  creative  imagination.  In- 
stead of  the  feelings  being  aroused  by  the  images  that 
are  suggested,  we  have  the  phenomenon  of  feelings  gen- 
erating images  of  experiences  of  a  corresponding  type. 
A  person  who  has  a  fit  of  the  blues  due  to  fatigue  or 
other  physiological  disturbances  may  have  suggested  to 
his  mind  images  of  experiences  associated  with  unpleasant 
feeling,  and  he  may  form  much  darker  pictures  of  his 
present  situation  and  of  the  future  than  the  facts  justify. 

[58] 


FEELING  AND  IMAGINATION 

Present  feeling  seems  to  act  as  a  selective  agent  in  bring- 
ing into  consciousness  images  associated  with  unpleasant 
experiences  or  images  that  contrast  unpleasantly  with 
what  is  now  being  experienced,  and  to  so  direct  the 
combination  of  these  images  as  to  greatly  increase  the 
unpleasant  feelings  and  the  corresponding  depression. 
The  imagination  thus  intensifies  and  justifies  the  emo- 
tional state,  and  many  people  think  that  the  images  with 
which  the  mind  has  been  occupied  are  the  real  cause  of 
the  mood.  In  a  large  proportion  of  cases,  however,  a 
depression  of  the  vital  functions  and  the  consequent  dis- 
agreeable feelings  were  the  chief  cause  of  the  unpleasing 
images  occupying  the  mind  and  the  consequent  mental 
depression. 

Sometimes,  however,  the  cause  is  primarily  mental, 
although  lowered  vitality  is  a  contributing  factor.  Sorrow, 
failure,  or  disappointment  coming  when  one  is  fatigued 
is  likely  to  call  to  mind  memories  of  similar  experiences 
and  cause  the  creative  imagination  to  build  up  a  gloomy 
picture  of  the  future,  while  in  vigorous  health  such  an 
unpleasant  experience  would  perhaps  suggest  by  contrast 
former  successes  and  pleasures  and  lead  to  picturing  a 
brighter  future  shortly  to  be  enjoyed. 

Instincts  and  imagination.  Instinctive  tendencies,  of 
which  we  may  or  may  not  be  aware,  play  a  very  promi- 
nent part  in  stimulating  and  directing  the  imagination. 
The  hungry  person  finds  images  concerned  with  food  and 
eating  persistently  coming  into  mind,  and  the  longer  he 
remains  hungry  the  more  will  such  images  predominate 
in  his  mental  processes.  When  his  needs  have  been  fully 
satisfied  such  images  disappear,  and  it  may  be  difficult  to 
voluntarily  bring  them  into  consciousness. 

[59] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

An  individual  in  whom  fear  is  aroused  promptly  develops 
an  exceedingly  active  imagination  concerning  possible 
sources  of  danger.  This  instinct  may  almost  completely 
control  one  when  he  is  alone  and  in  darkness.  The  faint- 
est sights  and  sounds  arouse  images  of  objects,  animals, 
forces  of  nature,  diseases,  or  persons  that  are  feared,  and 
these  images  are  combined  into  what  seems  to  be  a  real 
situation  of  danger.  The  actual  sensations  experienced 
may  have  no  connection  with  anything  that  is  dangerous, 
and  if  the  instinctive  fear  were  not  aroused  would  pass 
either  without  notice  or  with  the  usual  commonplace  inter- 
pretation. But  when  fear  is  present  they  produce  images 
that  recall  others  associated  with  fear,  and  soon  there  is  in 
the  mind  of  the  individual  a  mental  picture  of  a  situation 
that  is  decidedly  precarious.  What  is  true  of  the  instincts 
of  hunger  and  fear  is  true  of  all  the  other  instincts,  as  is 
shown  most  clearly  in  literature.  Evidently  love,  religion, 
and  ambition,  or  the  desire  for  approval,  are  among  the 
strongest  stimuli  to  the  creative  imagination,  since  they  are 
most  frequently  involved  in  artistic  and  literary  productions. 
Desire  and  imagination.  Without  desire  there  is  little 
I  constructive  or  creative  imagination.  Images  may  be 
\brought  to  mind  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  associa- 
tion, but  there  will  be  little  activity  in  the  way  of  forming 
them  into  complete  pictures,  unless  by  so  doing  some 
desired  end  is  likely  to  be  gained.  The  most  vivid  de- 
scription of  how  a  game  may  be  played  or  some  object 
constructed  will  not  result  in  a  unified  picture  unless  there 
is  some  desire  to  understand  or  to  do  which  directs  the 
combination  of  images.  Still  less  does  the  creative  imag- 
ination become  active  without  the  stimulus  of  mood  or 
desire.  Desire  is  not  only  a  stimulus  to  the  imagination 

[60] 


FEELING  AND  IMAGINATION 

but  it  is  a  very  large  factor  in  determining  what  images 
shall  be  brought  to  mind  and  how  they  shall  be  combined. 
The  girl  who  wishes  to  go  to  a  party  frequently  finds  it 
almost  impossible  to  keep  her  thoughts  away  from  things 
connected  with  that  festivity.  If  there  are  difficulties  in 
the  way  of  her  going,  she  imagines  a  thousand  possible 
ways  of  overcoming  them,  and  it  is  astonishing  how  much 
ingenuity  she  may  show  in  getting  her  heart's  desire,  even 
though  ordinarily  she  may  not  seem  to  have  much  initia- 
tive or  originality.  If  there  is  no  difficulty  about  going, 
but  the  experience  is  a  new  one,  then  her  mind  may  be 
filled  with  images  of  flowers,  lights,  music,  delicious  re- 
freshments, the  charming  people  she  may  meet,  and  the 
interesting  things  that  may  happen.  She  may  picture  so 
vividly  imaginary  scenes  as  to  become  entirely  uncon- 
scious of  her  present  surroundings. 

The  surest  way  of  stimulating  imagination  is  to  excite 
desire  of  some  kind.  The  person  with  many  unsatisfied 
longings  is  always  the  possessor  of  an  active  imagination, 
unless  he  has  given  up  all  hope  of  attainment 

On  the  other  hand  and  yet  in  accordance  with  the  same 
principle  of  unfulfilled  activity,  what  is  feared  or  abhorred 
is  a  strong  stimulus  to  the  imaginative  activity.  In  both 
sleeping  and  waking  life  images  of  fear  and  horror  come 
unbidden  to  some  persons  and  dominate  their  creative 
imagination. 

EXERCISES 

1.  To  what  extent  can  you  get  the  same  feelings  from  mental 
images  that  you  get  from  sensations? 

2.  What  relation  is  there  between  the  vividness  of  the  images 
that  arise  in  connection  with  certain  emotions  and  the  strength  of 
the  emotion  you  experience?    Illustrate. 

[61] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

3.  Give  examples  of  the  images  and  emotions  aroused  in  your 
mind  by  certain  pieces  of  literature. 

4.  Study  Poe's  analysis  of  the  construction  of  "  The  Raven  "  and 
see  how  far  the  nature  and  vividness  of  the  images  aroused  produce 
the  intended  emotional  effect.    Analyze  some  other  selection  in  a 
similar  way. 

5.  Illustrate  the  fact  that  emotions  stimulate  the  creative  imagina- 
tion and  increase  its  vividness. 

6.  Illustrate  the  influence  of  desire  and  also  of  dread  upon  the 
imagination. 


[62] 


CHAPTER  VII 
IMAGINATION  AND  DREAMING 

Dream  imagery.  Images  do  not  differ  greatly  in  kind 
and  in  the  ways  in  which  they  are  brought  into  existence, 
whether  they  appear  in  daydreams,  ordinary  night  dreams, 
or  in  dreams  that  occur  in  sickness,  under  the  influence 
of  drugs,  or  in  the  hypnotic  state.  Dreams  may  be  more 
vivid  under  some  circumstances  than  under  others,  but  if 
they  are  dominantly  visual  in  one  state  they  are  usually 
so  in  all,  and  the  same  is  true  as  regards  other  kinds  of 
imagery.  The  chief  difference  between  a  night  dream 
and  a  daydream  is  that  in  the  latter  case  consciousness 
is  more  complete.  One  is,  to  some  extent,  aware  of  his 
surroundings  and  knows  that  his  images  are  mental.  In 
night  dreams  the  senses  are  only  slightly  active  and 
the  dream  images  fully  occupy  consciousness  so  that  all 
seem  real. 

In  no  form  of  dream  can  anything  be  represented  the 
elements  of  which  one  has  not  experienced  sensorially, 
and  in  all  sorts  of  dreams  the  coming  and  arrangement 
of  images  is  largely  independent  of  will,  although  in  day- 
dreams there  may  be  a  little  conscious  guidance  of  the 
imaginative  activity. 

A  person  born  blind  can  no  more  dream  of  visual  ex- 
periences than  he  can  image  them  in  his  waking  state. 
A  study  of  the  dreams  of  the  blind  reveals  the  fact  that 
those  who  have  been  blind  from  an  early  age  dream  in 

[63] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

terms  of  touch  and  motion  or  of  sound.  Very  few  of  those 
who  were  less  than  three  years  old  when  sight  was  lost 
have  any  visual  images  in  their  dreams.  Nearly  all  of 
those  who  were  over  seven  when  they  became  blind  have 
visual  images  in  their  dreams  and  also  in  their  ordinary 
waking  life.  Of  those  between  three  and  seven  some 
dream  in  visual  terms  and  some  do  not. 

The  dreams  of  persons  who  are  both  blind  and  deaf 
are  almost  wholly  in  terms  of  touch  and  motion.  They 
not  infrequently  talk  in  their  sleep  with  their  fingers  as 
many  normal  people  do  with  their  vocal  organs.  Dream 
images  are  generally  more  vivid  than  waking  images,  or 
at  least  they  seem  so.  This  is  probably  due  to  the  fact 
that  there  are  few  or  no  sensations  to  contrast  with  them. 

Sensations  and  dreams.  Although  the  senses  are  to  a 
considerable  extent  closed  in  sleep,  they  play  some  part  in 
dream  imagery,  and  in  many  instances  the  dream  image 
is  modified  or  suggested  by  sensations.  When  asleep,  if 
the  eyes  are  fatigued  or  painful,  dreams  may  result,  while 
the  repeated  flashing  of  light  that  does  not  waken  the 
sleeper  may  produce  the  same  effect.  Probably  the  most 
common  sources  of  dream  imagery  are  bodily  sensations 
coming  from  the  internal  organs  and  kinaesthetic  and 
touch  sensations  caused  by  the  position  in  which  one  is 
lying.  Touch  sensations,  especially  those  of  temperature, 
very  often  excite  dream  images.  It  is  not  at  all  unusual 
for  one  whose  feet  have  become  uncovered  to  dream  of 
walking  barefoot  in  the  snow. 

These  facts  regarding  dream  images  as  produced  by 
sensations  have  been  obtained  not  only  by  observing 
what  sensations  were  being  experienced  at  the  moment 
of  waking  but  by  many  careful  experiments  in  which 

[64] 


IMAGINATION  AND  DREAMING 

sleeping  individuals  were  stimulated  sensorially  and  then 
awakened  and  asked  to  relate  their  dreams. 

So  nearly  alike  are  dream  images  and  sensations  that 
it  is  sometimes  impossible  for  one  to  tell  whether  he  is 
remembering  a  dream  or  a  real  experience.  If  the  dream 
experience  has  been  concerned  with  other  places,  persons, 
and  things  than  those  which  appear  to  him  when  he 
awakes,  he  knows  at  once  that  he  has  been  dreaming. 
Otherwise  he  may  be  in  doubt.  If  you  have  dreamed 
that  some  person  staying  in  the  house  came  into  your 
room,  did  certain  things,  and  then  went  out  again,  it  may 
be  utterly  impossible  for  you  to  tell  whether  the  person 
was  in  the  room  or  not.  You  can  determine  the  truth  of 
the  matter  only  by  questioning  the  person  or  someone  else 
who  might  know,  or  by  observing  whether  any  object  in 
the  room  has  been  displaced  in  accordance  with  your  dream. 

Recent  experiences  and  dreams.  Aside  from  what  may 
be  called  "  stock  dreams,"  which  occur  again  and  again, 
a  close  study  of  the  subject  reveals  the  fact  that  nearly 
all  dreams  are  connected  in  some  way  with  recent  experi-  i 
ence.  This  is  most  readily  noted  in  the  case  of  unusual 
and  exciting  occurrences.  The  person  who  has  been  in  a 
fire  or  a  train  wreck  frequently  suffers  more  in  his  dreams 
than  he  did  in  his  actual  experience.  The  painful  inci- 
dents stand  out  more  clearly  than  in  the  original,  where 
the  tragic  was  mingled,  with  the  commonplace. 

In  the  case  of  events  less  exciting  the  dreams  are  much 
less  like  memories,  and  contradictory  experiences  are  often 
associated  with  the  same  person.  The  death  of  a  friend 
or  relative  is  a  frequent  cause  of  dreams,  but  usually  the 
person  is  represented  as  alive  and  frequently  the  circum- 
stances are  very  pleasant. 

[65] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

New  experiences,  even  though  not  very  exciting,  are 
a  common  source  of  dreams,  but  very  often  the  persons, 
objects,  and  events  concerned  are  so  modified  and  con- 
fused with  images  from  experiences  long  past  that  one  may 
not  at  first  realize  that  recent  events  occasioned  the  dream. 

Fatigue  plays  a  considerable  part  in  dream  imagery, 
and  often  the  whole  dream  is  somewhat  in  the  nature  of  an 
after-image.  One  may  continue  in  his  dreams  the  physi- 
cal or  mental  activity  in  which  he  was  engaged  just  be- 
fore going  to  sleep.  The  same  thing  is  done  or  attempted 
over  and  over  again,  usually  under  difficulties  and  seem- 
ingly with  little  success.  Sometimes,  however,  the  condi- 
tion is  reversed,  perhaps  more  frequently  when  there  is 
partial  recovery  from  fatigue,  and  a  problem  which  could 
not  be  solved  when  awake  is  solved  in  a  dream.  A  num- 
ber of  instances  have  been  reported  of  correct  dream 
solutions  of  mathematical  and  other  problems  which  had 
baffled  the  waking  consciousness.  In  a  few  instances  the 
solution  has  been  found  written  on  paper,  although  the 
individual  had  no  recollection  of  the  dream  success.  More 
often,  however,  seemingly  satisfactory  solutions  of  difficult 
problems  are  found  to  be  quite  otherwise  when  one  be- 
comes fully  awake.  What  seems  wonderfully  clear  and 
convincing,  when  dreaming  and  at  the  moment  of  waking, 
becomes  less  and  less  definite  and  reasonable  as  one 
considers  it. 

Wishes  and  dreams.  Some  psychologists  have  gone  so 
far  as  to  say  that  dreams  are  always  more  or  less  directly 
expressive  of  wishes  or  desires.  This  is  probably  an  over- 
emphasis upon  one  of  several  factors  involved  in  stimulat- 
ing and  directing  dream  experiences.  Wishes  in  the  broad 
sense  of  the  term  correspond  to  activities  that  have  been 

[66] 


IMAGINATION  AND  DREAMING 

initiated  and  have  not  ceased  or  have  not  reached  a  cul- 
mination. Their  effect  is  therefore  not  unlike  that  of 
occupations  that  have  been  carried  on  just  before  going 
to  sleep  and  which  continue  in  the  same  or  in  a  modified 
form  in  dreams.  Suppressed  desires  play  a  large  part  in 
dream  experiences,  but  they  are  frequently  so  disguised 
that  only  an  expert  student  of  dreams  is  able  to  detect 
them  and  demonstrate  their  real  relation. 

In  nervous  disorders,  especially  those  due  to  suppres- 
sion of  desires  or  of  natural  impulses,  a  study  of  the 
dreams  of  the  patient  will  frequently  give  a  clue  to  the 
original  sources  of  the  difficulty.  Not  infrequently  impulses 
or  desires  that  were  suppressed  and  covered  up,  perhaps 
in  early  childhood,  have  remained  for  many  years  a  dis- 
turbing element  in  the  mental  processes.  Sometimes  in 
such  cases  the  subject  himself  has  forgotten  the  original 
incident  until  it  is  recalled  to  him  by  close  questioning, 
either  in  the  normal  or  in  the  hypnotic  state.  Dream  ex- 
periences are  frequently  used  successfully  as  a  basis  for 
such  questioning  and  have  thus  come  to  play  a  large  part  in 
the  treatment  of  mental  disorders  and  associated  physical 
disabilities. 

Desire  and  abhorrence  frequently  combine  in  the  pro- 
duction of  images  of  a  certain  type,  as  when  a  soldier 
who  desires  to  be  brave  but  fears  that  he  will  prove  a 
coward  dreams  of  being  disgraced  by  cowardly  acts,  or 
when  one  dreams  of  yielding  to  temptation  of  any  kind. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Report  upon  dreams  that  seem  farthest  removed  from  any 
actual  event,  and  analyze  the  images  to  see  if  their  elements  are  the 
result  of  sensory  experiences. 

[67] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

2.  Describe  dreams  that  were  difficult  to  distinguish  from  actual 
experiences. 

3.  Give  examples  in  which  sensations  experienced  at  the  time 
were  clearly  the  cause  of  dreams. 

4.  Analyze  dreams  to  find  how  far  they  reflect  recent  experiences. 

5.  Show  the  part  that  desire  and  aversion  play  in  some  of  your 
dreams. 

6.  In  what  respects  does  your  dream  imaging  correspond  to  your 
working  imagination  when  you  are  not  striving  to  accomplish  a 
definite  thing? 

7.  In  what  respect  do  your  dreams  when  asleep  correspond  to 
your  daydreams,  or  waking  imagination  ? 

8.  Compare  your  nonvoluntary,  waking  imagination,  or  daydreams, 
with  your  dream  experiences,  noting  likeness  and  difference. 


[68] 


CHAPTER  VIII 
REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 

Similarity  and  purpose  in  reasoning.  All  reasoning  is 
based  on  similarity  and  leads  to  a  conclusion.  The  chief 
difference  between  daydreaming  and  reasoning  is  that  in 
reasoning  associations  of  similarity  are  more  prominent, 
while  symbols  and  general  truths  partly  take  the  place  of 
images.  Purpose  and  selective  attention  also  hold  a  more 
prominent  place  than  in  daydreaming.  These  distinguish- 
ing qualities  of  reasoning  make  it  inevitable  that  there 
shall  be  a  more  complete  analysis  and  careful  noting  of 
exact  points  of  resemblance.  The  images  characteristic 
of  dreaming  are  also  more  or  less  characteristic  of  reason- 
ing ;  but  in  reasoning,  what  the  image  stands  for,  rather 
than  the  image  itself,  is  of  most  importance. 

Most  of  the  students  who  were  asked  whether  they 
believed  in  capital  punishment  or  not,  and  their  reasons, 
reported  that  in  thinking  about  the  matter  they  formed 
concrete  images. 

When  the  words  "  capital  punishment "  came  to  my  ears  I 
immediately  saw  a  condemned  man  with  handcuffs  on,  standing 
in  a  court  room  with  a  hopeless  look  on  his  face. 

When  asked  my  opinion  I  began  to  wonder  how  this  law 
affected  the  rest  of  the  world  and  came  to  my  conclusion. 

When  asked  my  reasons  I  could  see  one  bad  man  in  a  street 
filled  with  good  people,  and  wondered  why  he  should  be  allowed 
to  return  to  them  after  he  had  committed  crime  demanding 
capital  punishment. 

[69] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

I  saw  the  words  "  capital  punishment,"  then  I  saw  a  man 
killing  another,  and  the  image  of  an  electric  chair.  Then  I  saw 
the  picture  of  a  man,  haggard  and  hatless,  skulking  along  the 
side  of  a  building.  Then  I  saw  a  man,  who  had  been  imprisoned 
for  life,  killing  his  guard. 

First  I  saw  an  image  of  a  man  with  a  black  robe  around 
him  and  a  rope  attached  to  his  neck,  with  several  men  stand- 
ing around  him.  Then  I  saw  the  same  man  with  his  relatives 
before  he  entered  the  death  room,  everyone  crying  but  the 
intended  victim. 

A  few  had  only  symbol  or  verbal  images,  as  in  the 
following  case : 

At  first  I  thought  of  the  word  itself,  and  thought  it  came 
from  caput,  thus  meaning  "  beheading  "  or  "  life  taking."  When 
asked  for  my  belief  I  at  first  thought  "  yes,"  because  of  a  specific 
remembrance  of  the  trouble  in  imprisonment  in  the  Thaw  case. 
Then  I  thought  of  the  frequent  unfairness  and  injustice.  Also 
I  thought  that  it  (imprisonment)  is  really  a  worse  punishment 
than  taking  life,  if  just ;  and  if  unjust,  the  man  has  a  chance. 
I  thought  that  a  man  might  do  something  very  wrong  and  yet 
be  of  use  to  society  in  some  ways. 

The  kind  of  imagery  was  mainly  verbal  and  very  slightly 
auditory,  with  practically  no  visual  imagery  except  the  visual 
image  of  the  word. 

In  another  experiment  students  were  asked  whether  a 
hunter  who  passed  entirely  around  a  tree  in  which  there 
was  a  squirrel,  which  moved  so  as  to  keep  hidden  from 
him  all  the  time,  really  went  around  the  squirrel.  All  re- 
ported concrete  images.  In  this  case  images  of  space 
relations  are  a  necessary  part  of  the  reasoning  process, 
but  there  is  loss  rather  than  gain  in  imaging  in  detail  the 

[70] 


REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 

exact  appearance  of  the  man,  the  species  of  the  tree, 
and  the  squirrel,  although  some  do  so. 

It  is  found  that  in  some  instances  reasoning  is  not  cor- 
rect because  of  the  lack  of  definite  images.  For  example,  a 
number  of  children  were  given  this  problem :  "  If  you  were 
to  walk  directly  west  from  here  three  miles,  and  then  a  car- 
riage were  to  come  along  and  you  were  to  get  in  and  ride 
east  two  miles,  how  far  would  you  be  from  this  place  ?  "  A 
large  proportion  of  the  answers  were  either  "  five  miles  " 
or  "  six  miles."  Evidently  the  children  did  not  in  this 
case  form  definite  images  of  space  relations,  but  followed 
their  habitual  method  of  dealing  with  problems  which 
sound  very  much  like  this  one,  by  either  adding  or  mul- 
tiplying. A  concrete  image  of  the  person  as  moving  in 
one  direction  and  then  along  the  same  course  in  the  oppo- 
site direction  does  lead  to  the  correct  conclusion.  Such 
concrete  imagery  is  not,  however,  absolutely  necessary  to 
the  solution  of  this  problem.  One  may  think  of  east  and 
west  as  opposites  of  each  other  without  concretely  repre- 
senting movements  in  space.  Evidently  an  image  of  the 
features  or  clothes  of  the  person  walking  would  be  of 
no  value. 

In  solving  such  a  problem  as  the  following,  many 
normal-school  and  college  students  fail  either  because  they 
do  not  image  concretely  or  do  not  analyze  and-  observe 
the  essential  elements  :  "  If  it  is  worth  sixty  cents  a  cord 
to  cut  cordwood  into  two  pieces,  what  will  it  be  worth  to 
cut  it  into  three  pieces  ? " 

Symbols  and  exact  reasoning.  In  exact  reasoning,  of 
which  mathematics,  especially  algebra,  may  serve  as  a  type, 
the  images  used  must  be  almost  wholly  symbols  represent- 
ing relations  rather  than  concrete  images  of  things.  In 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

geometry  images  of  the  lines,  angles,  and  figures  play  a 
large  part  in  reasoning.  One  who  has  good  control  of 
visual  imagery  may  work  out  propositions  quite  success- 
fully without  any  apparatus  for  making  actual  lines.'  In 
all  geometrical  reasoning  the  lines  and  figures  are  partly 
concrete  and  partly  symbolical.  A  concrete  triangle  is 
represented  on  paper  or  in  the  mind,  but  unless  one  thinks 
of  that  triangle  as  being  merely  suggestive  of  any  triangle 
of  the  same  type,  whatever  the  length  of  its  sides,  his 
reasoning  is  likely  to  lead  to  false  conclusions. 

When  the  lines  in  a  figure  are  designated  by  letters 
and  their  relations  are  expressed  in  algebraical  form,  think- 
ing may  become  wholly  symbolical.  To  many  persons  such 
thinking  is  vague  and  uncertain  unless  they  also  image 
the  lines  symbolized.  Without  thus  picturing  lines  of 
various  lengths  and  inclinations  combined  to  form  the 
type  of  figure  being  considered,  they  feel  no  assurance  of 
the  correctness  of  their  conclusions.  In  order  to  reason 
with  any  degree  of  clearness  regarding  the  proposition 
they  must  do  a  good  deal  of  concrete  imaging.  To  ad- 
vanced mathematicians,  who  have  developed  to  a  high 
degree  the  power  of  abstract  thinking,  concrete  imaging 
seems  childish  and  a  waste  of  time. 

Many  scientific  persons  take  satisfaction  in  using  alge- 
braical symbols  instead  of  concrete  instances,  even  when 
their  reasoning  is  not  concerned  with  mathematical  quan- 
tities. For  example,  in  psychology,  instead  of  saying, 
"  The  odor  of  an  orange  recalls  to  mind  images  of  its 
form,  color,  and  taste,"  they  say,  "  Sensation  A  brings 
into  consciousness  images  B,  C,  and  D  that  have  been 
associated  with  it."  Such  a  mode  of  thinking  lacks  in 
concrete  representation  of  actual  experiences,  but  gains  in 

[72] 


REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 

brevity  and  generality.  In  the  instance  quoted,  the  exact 
points  necessary  for  reaching  a  conclusion  regarding  the 
laws  of  association  are  represented  by  the  symbols,  without 
loss  of  time  and  without  the  confusion  occasioned  by 
representing  unessential  details  and  variations  that  do  not 
change  the  truth  involved. 

To  many  people,  however,  such  abstract  or  symbolic 
reasoning  is  very  unsatisfactory.  They  prefer  to  represent 
a  concrete  experience,  and  with  that  as  a  basis  reach  the 
conclusion  that  certain  results  will  follow,  not  only  in  the 
instance  represented  but  in  all  other  instances  of  the  same 
type.  Some  people  can  reason  nearly  as  rapidly  in  this 
way  as  others  can  by  the  use  of  symbols  only,  while  other 
persons  must  spend  considerable  time  in  representing  not 
only  the  one  concrete  instance  but  many  others  before 
they  can  reach  a  conclusion. 

It  is  claimed  by  some  persons  that  a  representation  even 
of  symbols  is  not  necessary,  and  there  has  been  consider- 
able discussion  whether  such  "  imageless  thought "  is  pos- 
sible or  not.  In  cases  where  an  individual  is  not  distinctly 
conscious  of  either  concrete  or  symbol  images  it  is  probable 
that  some  vaguely  represented  or  actual  movements  of  vocal 
organs,  hand,  eye,  etc.,  play  an  important  part  in  the  mental 
operations.  When_the  mind  is  dealing  with  familiar  mean- 
ings in  the  usual  way,  there  is  less  need  for  images  of 
any  kind.  It  may,  therefore,  be  true  that  many  people 
do  some  thinking  without  images  of  sufficient  distinctness 
to  be  noticeable,  and  that  some  do  nearly  all  their  thinking 
in  that  way. 

The  definitions  given  by  children  at  different  ages  show 
that  the  older  they  become  the  less  surely  are  concrete  ex- 
periences associated  with  words.  For  example,  the  primary 

[73] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

child  says,  when  he  is  asked  to  tell  what  the  following 
words  mean  :  car — "goes  on  a  track";  trouble—  "when 
you  break  a  glass" ;  pretty — "got  a  pretty  dress"  ;  school 
—  "where  you  learn " ;  study —  "writing " ;  bee—  "  bumble- 
bee "  ;  while  an  older  pupil  gives  more  abstract  defini- 
tions, such  as  these  :  bee —  "  a  small  insect  which  is  able 
to  change  the  nectar  of  flowers  into  honey";  pretty  — 
"something  that  is  beautiful";  trouble—  "in  danger." 
It  is  found  also  in  testing  the  definitions  of  older  pupils 
that  the  more  familiar  the  word  is  the  less  are  concrete 
experiences  used  in  defining  it.  It  seems  probable,  then, 
that  in  certain  stages  of  development  of  the  process  of 
thinking  and  reasoning  in  any  line,  images  are  necessary, 
but  that  later  the  concrete  images  may  be  eliminated,  and 
that  even  images  of  symbols  may,  in  the  case  of  some 
persons,  have  ultimately  little  place  in  thought  processes. 
With  others,  however,  vivid  images,  either  of  some  typ- 
ical experience  or  of  symbols  used  in  representing  that 
experience,  are  necessary  to  clear  thinking,  and  with  use 
such  images  become  more,  rather  than  less,  vivid.  In  a 
large  proportion  of  cases  the  images  in  ordinary  thinking 
are  vague  and  fleeting,  but  when  there  is  hesitation  or 
doubt  they  are  made  more  vivid  and  perhaps  also  more 
concrete. 

Images,  judgment,  and  decision.  In  the  case  of  most 
persons  concrete  imagery  has  a  great  influence  upon  judg- 
ment and  choice.  This  fact  is  well  recognized  by  skilled 
orators,  politicians,  and  advertisers.  The  political  leader 
who  succeeded  in  getting  voters  to  associate  with  the 
name  of  his  party  the  image  of  a  workman  with  a  full 
dinner  pail  won  the  election.  A  vivid  picture  of  concrete 
instances  of  undesirable  happenings  when  a  certain  tariff 

[74] 


REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 

policy  was  enforced,  in  contrast  with  instances  of  happi- 
ness and  prosperity  when  the  country  was  living  under 
another  tariff  law,  has  more  effect  upon  the  judgment  of 
men  with  regard  to  tariff  policies  and  upon  their  choice 
of  party  than  the  most  logical  abstract  demonstrations  of 
the  fundamental  principles  of  political  economy. 

The  convincing  speaker  is  the  one  who  calls  up  in  the 
minds  of  his  auditors  a  concrete  picture  which  is  not  only 
vivid  but  which  arouses  distinct  feelings  of  a  certain  kind 
and  then  associates  that  picture  with  the  person,  party,  or 
principle  that  he  wishes  them  to  favor  or  condemn.  Vivid- 
ness of  representation  sways  the  judgment  and  directs  the 
will  of  the  great  majority  of  people  to  a  far  greater  extent 
than  does  accurate  classification  according  to  similarity  and 
careful  reasoning  in  accordance  with  principles  of  logic. 

Imaging  in  induction  and  deduction.  In  inductive  rea-" 
soning,  previous  concrete  experiences  form  the  basis  of 
expectation  or  inference  as  to  what  is  likely  to  happen 
under  given  circumstances.  This  kind  of  reasoning  is 
sometimes  little  more  than  the  working  of  the  law  of  habit 
and  hence  does  not  necessarily  involve  much  imaging. 
In  our  everyday  experiences  we  learn  to  act  in  ways  that 
bring  the  most  satisfactory'results,  but  we  do  not  neces- 
sarily distinctly  represent  former  occasions.  We  expect 
that  food  of  a  certain  appearance  will  taste  in  a  certain 
way,  and  we  anticipate  the  touch  sensations  which  may 
be  gained  from  an  object  giving  certain  visual  sensations. 
We  know  what  will  happen  if  a  glass  is  dropped  upon  a 
stone  or  if  a  piece  of  wood  is  thrown  into  the  water. 

When,  however,  we  attempt  to  formulate  a  general 
truth,  such  as  the  statement  that  lowering  the  tempera- 
ture causes  the  moisture  in  the  air  to  condense  in  the 

[75] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

form  of  drops  of  water,  we  must  observe  much  more 
closely,  note  similarities  of  conditions,  and  do  a  good  deal 
of  imaging  before  we  clearly  perceive  the  basis  of  the 
general  truth  and  are  able  to  express  it  in  words.  After 
such  a  general  truth  has  been  formulated,  and  we  attempt 
to  use  it  in  deductive  reasoning,  we  are  likely  to  think 
of  it  either  by  imaging  the  words  or  the  mathematical 
formula  by  which  it  is  expressed  or  by  picturing  some 
concrete  instance  in  which  its  application  is  clearly  shown, 
such  as  a  pitcher  of  ice  water  with  drops  of  moisture  on 
its  sides.  In  applying  the  truth  to  new  situations  we  must 
observe  or  image  the  situation  and  see  whether  it  belongs 
to  the  class  covered  by  the  general  principle.  In  doing 
this  the  mind  may  be  occupied  chiefly  with  symbols  and 
meanings,  or  there  may  be  much  representation  of  con- 
crete experiences,  or  the  typical  instance  from  which  the 
general  truth  was  drawn  may  be  pictured.  For  instance, 
the  grass  may  be  imaged  as  becoming  wet  when  the  sun 
goes  down  and  the  air  becomes  cooler.  Highly  trained 
thinkers  are  more  likely  in  both  inductive  and  deductive 
reasoning  to  have  their  minds  occupied  chiefly  with  sym- 
bols and  the  similarities  and  relations  for  which  they  stand. 
There  is  no  clear  distinction  in  the  ordinary  thinking 
of  most  people  between  induction  and  deduction.  A  situa- 
tion that  seems  to  be  similar  to  others  that  have  been 
experienced  calls  forth  a  representation  of  the  results  that 
are  to  be  expected.  If  there  is  any  doubt  about  the  matter, 
the  situation  is  examined  more  closely  and  compared  with 
images  of  other  situations  that  seem  to  have  been  similar, 
and  a  conclusion  is  reached  as  to  what  will  happen,  with- 
out any  distinct  formulation  of  a  general  truth  applicable 
to  all  situations  like  this  one.  In  other  words,  there  is 

[76] 


REASONING  AND  IMAGINATION 

a  great  deal  of  reasoning  from  particular  to  particular  in 
which  memory,  habit,  and  concrete  imagery  play  the  promi- 
nent parts,  while  consciousness  of  general  truths  which 
may  be  expressed  in  the  form  of  symbols  is  vague  and 
inexact. 

Most  people  expect  the  reddest  apple  to  be  the  best 
flavored,  although  they  have  never  thought  of  the  exact 
relation  between  color  and  taste.  The  housewife  who  has 
been  cheated  by  one  peddler  may  image  the  experience 
and  refuse  to  trade  with  the  next,  although  she  has  never 
made  any  definite  induction  as  to  what  classes  of  persons 
are  likely  to  be  dishonest 

EXERCISES 

1.  Notice  and  report  the  part  that  images  play  in  your  own  think- 
ing and  reasoning  in  specific  cases  and  discuss  the  advantages  and 
disadvantages  of  using  concrete  images  in  greater  or  less  detail. 

2.  Study   two    such   contrasting   types   of   oratory   as    Burke's 
speeches  and  Talmage's  sermons  and  note  the  part  that  imagery 
plays  in  each  case  and  their  relative  effectiveness  for  popular  appeal. 

3.  Reason  either  inductively  or  deductively  regarding  the  usual 
relation  between  loss  of  sleep  and  good  nature,  then  notice  the  part 
that  concrete  images  play  in  such  reasoning  or  report  the  part  that 
imagery  played  in  some  development  lesson  or  argument  you  have 
heard. 


[77] 


PART  II 
THE  IMAGINATIVE  LIFE  OF  CHILDREN 


CHAPTER  IX 

FACTORS  INVOLVED  IN  THE  EARLY  DEVELOP- 
MENT OF  IMAGINATION 

The  beginnings  of  imagination.  The  first  mental 
images  develop  in  a  child's  mind  through  the  habitual 
association  of  sensations.  When  a  child  a  few  months 
old  turns  to  look  for  the  source  of  a  sound,  it  is  probable 
that  if  the  sound  is  a  familiar  one  he  has  some  sort  of 
image  of  what  he  will  see.  In  a  similar  way  the  child 
who  has  brought  a  certain  object  to  his  mouth  a  number 
of  times  has  an  anticipatory  image  of  the  sensation  he 
is  to  experience.  When  this  anticipation  is  verified  he 
may  be  said  to  recognize  or  perceive,  and  his  disappoint- 
ment, if  the  expected  sensation  does  not  come,  may  also  be 
interpreted  as  indicating  an  image  of  what  was  expected. 
For  instance,  a  child  who  often  put  the  smooth  leather 
of  his  shoe  to  his  mouth  seemed  disappointed  and  dis- 
pleased when  he  brought  a  chamois-skin  bootee  in  contact 
with  his  lips. 

The  enjoyment  derived  from  playing  peek-a-boo  is 
probably  due  in  part  to  the  confirmation  of  an  anticipatory 
image  by  the  expected  sensation.  If  a  child  shows  knowl- 
edge of  an  object  when  he  is  receiving  no  sensation  from 
it,  there  is  still  better  evidence  of  the  existence  of  an 
image,  as  when  a  child  reaches  for  something  which  he 
has  dropped  but  cannot  see  or  for  something  which  is 
in  its  customary  place  yet  is  not  in  sight.  If  an  object 

[81] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

has  been  seen  only  once  in  a  certain  place,  the  promi- 
nence and  permanency  of  an  image  is  still  more  clearly 
indicated.  For  instance,  a  boy  a  little  over  a  year  old 
who  had  seen  a  persimmon  placed  on  a  shelf  made  signs 
the  next  day  indicating  his  desire  for  the  fruit,  although  he 
could  see  only  the  shelf  upon  which  it  had  been  placed. 

In  the  early  development  of  imagery  an  interval  be- 
tween the  sensation  suggesting  the  presence  of  an  object 
and  the  sensation  given  by  the  object  is  favorable  to  the 
formation  of  an  image  of  it.  When  two  or  more  sensa- 
tions always  occur  in  immediate  succession  there  is  little 
opportunity  for  forming  images,  and  the  perceptions  are 
largely  a  matter  of  habit  involving  little  more  than  the 
tendency  to  make  the  right  motion  in  response  to  the 
sensation  being  received. 

Language  and  images.  The  formation  of  images  is 
greatly  helped  by  receiving  sensations  which  are  associated 
with  an  object  in  the  absence  of  that  object  and  when  all 
the  surroundings  are  different  from  those  in  which  it  is 
usually  perceived.  Sounds,  especially  words,  are  the  most 
effective  means  of  calling  up  images  of  things  that  are 
_not  present.  If  a  child  has  seen  a  dog  and  heard  it  bark 
and  later,  perhaps  when  in  the  house,  hears  it  again,  he 
is  likely  to  show  interest  and  doubtless  has  some  sort  of 
visual  image  of  the  animal  and  its  movements.  In  a  simi- 
lar way,  if  a  child  sees  a  horse  and  pats  it  while  someone 
repeatedly  speaks  the  word  "  horse,"  he  is  likely  when- 
ever he  hears  that  word  to  form  a  visual  image  of  the 
horse  and  of  the  sensations  he  experienced  in  touching 
it.  The  immediate  response  to  a  word  by  some  kind  of 
movement  associated  with  it,  such  as  waving  good-by  or 
playing  pat-a-cake  in  response  to  a  suggestion,  is  not  as 

[82] 


EARLY  DEVELOPMENT  OF  IMAGINATION 

likely  to  be  accompanied  by  images  as  are  words  sug- 
gesting objects.    Words  are  the  most  effective  means  of  [ 
freeing  objects  from  their  immediate  surroundings  and  / 
thus  developing  images  that  are  independent  of  any  par-  ( 
ticular  place  or  associated  object. 

If  it  were  not  for  words,  associations  of  time  and  place 
would  be  much  more  limited  than  they  are.  Words,  bring 
images  of  objects  into  the  mind  in  places  where  they  have 
never  been  seen  and  after  considerable  intervals  of  time, 
and  thus  varied  associations  of  time  and  place  are  formed. 
It  is  true  that  when  a  word  is  spoken  the  child  forms  an 
image  not  only  of  the  object  named  but  of  the  things  and 
events  associated  with  it  at  some  particular  time.  But  if 
the  object  has  been  seen  under  varying  conditions,  brought 
to  mind  in  various  circumstances  and  mentally  associated 
with  things  with  which  there  has  been  no  experience  at 
the  same  time  and  place,  the  tendency  is  for  the  image 
of  the  object  to  suggest  less  definitely  particular  associates. 
In  other  words,  the  image  becomes  freer  and  consequently 
does  not  represent  such  distinct  memories. 

Although  images  develop  rapidly  in  response  to  words, 
yet  their  definiteness  and  the  possibility  of  their  being 
aroused  by  indirect  means  are  very  much  increased  by 
the  child's  own  use  of  words.  He  must  have  some  sort 
of  idea  or  image  when  he  speaks  the  name  of  an  object 
that  is  not  present  and  manifests  a  desire  for  it.  .  We  may 
Bay  that  the  development  of  constructive  imagination  is 
•indicated  by  the  way  in  which  the  child  puts  words  to- 
g^ther  in  forming  sentences.  At  first  he  uses  only  one 
or  tvvo  words  to  suggest  the  thought  that  he  has  in  mind, 
but  later  he  uses  words  corresponding  to  the  object  and 
indicating  its  special  appearance,  where  it  is,  what  it  does 

[83] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

or  is  used  for,  in  an  order  which  suggests  a  completed 
picture  of  a  whole  scene  or  event.  Such  a  use  of  con- 
structive imagination  is,  of  course,  prepared  for  by  hear- 
ing and  understanding  sentences  spoken  by  others.  To 
understand  a  request  such  as  "  Go  into  the  dining  room 
and  bring  me  a  spoon  from  the  table,"  the  child  must 
construct  the  scene  and  the  movements  to  be  made.  In 
a  similar  way  he  begins  to  use  his  constructive  imagina- 
tion when  he  shows  an  interest  in  stories  which  reproduce 
events  in  which  he  has  participated. 

Tendency  to  animism.  Nearly  all  children  show  a  tend- 
ency at  an  early  age  to  note  the  resemblances  of  objects 
to  living  things  and  to  treat  them  as  if  they  were  alive 
and  had  the  characteristics  of  people.  The  most  universal 
manifestation  of  this  tendency  is  shown  in  the  way  in 
which  toys  resembling  persons  and  animals  are  used. 
Their  general  appearance  suggests  images  of  objects  that 
move,  eat,  and  feel ;  hence  it  is  not  strange  that  they 
should  be  treated  as  if  they  were  alive. ;  Flowers  and 
trees  often  move  in  the  wind  in  ways  similar  to  those  of 
persons  or  animals,  and  this  brings  to  the  child's  mind 
images  of  the  characteristics  of  living  things  which  are 
then  readily  associated  with  the  trees  or  flowers.  Besides 
this,  flowers,  sticks,  stones,  etc.  may  resemble  in  appear- 
ance a  face  or  some  prominent  part  of  the  human  body, 
such  as  an  eye  or  mouth,  and  this  is  sufficient  to  make 
the  child  regard  them  as  being  like  people. 

The  child  who  has  experienced  certain  feelings  as  a 
result  of  movements  of  objects,  and  .in  connection  with 
his  own  handling  of  them,  learns  to  infer  that  other  peo- 
ple under  similar  circumstances  have  the  same  feelings. 
It  is  only  a  slight  extension  of  this  tendency  which  causes 

[84] 


EARLY  DEVELOPMENT  OF  IMAGINATION 

children  to  ascribe  feelings  like  those  of  human  beings 
to  all  sorts  of  things,  animate  and  inanimate.  A  child 
may  treat  a  stick  or  a  stone  which  has  displeased  him 
in  much  the  same  way  as  he  would  a  companion,  or  if 
he  is  of  a  sympathetic  nature,  he  may,  as  some  children 
do,  pity  the  wood  that  is  put  in  the  fire  or  the  pebble 
which  must  stay  always  in  one  place.  This  tendency  to 
animism,  so  prominent  in  children,  is  a  strong  stimulus  to 
the  imagination  and  has  had  a  large  part  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  myths,  legends,  superstitions,  and  religions 
of  various  peoples. 

Imitation  and  imagination.  Children  less  than  a  year 
old  usually  begin  to  imitate  sounds  and  movements.  These 
more  or  less  complete  reproductions  indicate  and  help  to 
develop  images  of  movements  and  ideas  of  feelings  asso- 
ciated with  various  objects  and  acts.  When  imitation  is 
spontaneous  and  immediate  it  is  occasioned  by  sensations 
rather  than  by  images,  but  when  a  child  seems  to  repro- 
duce voluntarily  a  sound  or  a  movement,  some  time  after 
it  has  been  heard  or  seen,  he  must  be  guided  by  some 
sort  of  image,  and  this  image  doubtless  becomes  more 
definite  as  he  tries  again  and  again  to  reproduce  what 
he  has  perceived. 

Further  development  of  images  and  constructive  imag- 
ination appears  in  dramatic  imitations,  when  the  child 
reproduces  not  a  single  scene  or  movement  but  a  series 
of  events  which  occurred  at  different  times  and  places. 
In  such  cases  other  objects  and  persons  than  those  actually 
observed  in  the  original  experience  may  take  part  in  the 
performance,  and  some  of  the  acts  are  only  partially  per- 
formed or  are  perhaps  omitted  altogether.  The  child 
reproduces  the  experience  of  going  to  ride  in  a  carriage 

[85] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

or  a  car,  or  of  witnessing  a  fire,  or  of  going  to  a  circus 
by  using  furniture  or  playthings  to  represent  the  objects 
concerned,  while  he  himself,  perhaps  with  the  aid  of  his 
companions,  proceeds  to  supply  the  dramatic  action  by 
flourishing  a  whip,  shouting  to  the  imaginary  horse,  clang- 
ing a  gong,  or  prancing  like  a  circus  pony.  By  such 
dramatic  imitations  the  child  develops  clearer  images  and 
gains  a  considerable  power  of  control  over  them,  which 
enables  him  not  only  to  reproduce  incidents  which  he 
has  observed  but  also  to  construct  more  completely  those 
which  have  been  described  to  him.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  that  in  connection  with  all  the  early  playful  exercise 
of  the  imagination  the  child  is  controlling  his  movements 
and  manipulating  objects  to  represent  imaginary  things. 
Undoubtedly  the  early  power  of  controlling  images  is  the 
result  of  thus  regulating  his  own  movements  in  shifting 
objects  which  symbolize  to  some  extent  his  imaginings. 

Reminiscence  and  anticipation.  At  about  three  years 
of  age,  when  a  child  begins  to  use  his  creative  imagina- 
tion, he  often  shows  also  a  marked  tendency  to  recall 
former  experiences.  He  delights  in  relating  incidents 
that  occurred  several  months  earlier  and  can  frequently 
give  many  details  indicating  a  fairly  definite  and  accurate 
imagery.  These  reminiscences  of  past  experiences  serve 
as  a  basis  for  imaging  those  that  are  expected  in  the  future. 
Memories  of  what  he  did  last  summer  or  last  winter  or 
at  the  seashore  start  the  child  to  picturing  what  he  may 
do  and  what  may  happen  when  those  seasons  come  again 
or  those  places  are  once  more  visited.  Just  as  in  the 
early  use  of  the  creative  imagination  real  objects  serve 
as  a  stimulus  to  pretending  that  they  are  different  from 
what  they  really  are,  so  do  memories  of  past  experiences 

[86] 


EARLY  DEVELOPMENT  OF  IMAGINATION 

serve  as  a  basis  for  imagining  future  episodes  similar  in 
general  character  but  differing  in  various  and  agreeable 
ways.  Moreover,  just  as  the  activity  of  the  imagination 
is  contrasted  with,  and  to  some  extent  opposed  by,  the 
actual  sensations  given  by  objects,  so  when  a  child  again 
has  experiences  similar  to  those  he  remembers,  he  modi- 
fies his  anticipatory  imagery  of  the  future  and  limits  it 
more  closely  to  actual  facts  or  to  the  possibilities  of  the 
case.  At  the  same  time  variations  in  his  experience  furnish 
a  stimulus  to  variety  in  his  future  anticipatory  imaginings. 
Imagination  and  the  omnipotence  of  childhood.  The 
traditional  idea  of  omnipotence  is  indicated  by  the  phrase 
"He  spoke  and  it  was  so."  There  is  no  thought  of  means 
and  effort,  but  the  desire  or  the  will  produces  that  which 
has  been  conceived.  When  one  considers  for  a  moment 
it  is  clear  that  to  the  infant's  dawning  consciousness  needs 
are  supplied  and  wishes  are  gratified  without  personal 
effort.  As  the  infant  becomes  hungry,  food  is  provided ;  if 
he  is  pricked  and  cries,  relief  is  at  hand.  Later  a  bright 
object  is  seen,  and  at  a  gesture  or  a  word  it  is  placed  in 
his  hands.  During  all  his  time  of  helplessness,  the  child 
is  really  omnipotent.  Much  of  what  he  wishes  or  wills 
comes  almost  instantly  and  without  effort  on  his  part.'  In 
sharp  contrast  with  this  are  his  experiences  as  he  begins 
to  help  himself  and  supply  his  needs  and  desires  by  his 
own  thought  and  effort.  He  must  become  acquainted 
with  the  world  in  which  he  lives  and  conform  strictly  to 
its  laws  or  his  wishes  remain  ungratified.  The  words 
"  dress  me  "  do  not  quickly  result  in  his  being  properly 
dressed,  but  a  very  definite  series  of  movements  must  be 
carefully  made  in  proper  order  before  the  desired  result 
is  obtained  and  he  is  in  a  condition  to  gratify  his  next 

[87] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

desires.  Only  gradually  is  the  lesson  learned  that  we  live 
in  a  world  where  everything  must  be  paid  for  by  planning 
and  effort  suitable  to  the  occasion.  A  lifetime  of  school- 
ing is  sometimes  not  sufficient  to  teach  this  lesson  fully. 
Even  when  it  is  learned  there  is  relief  and  pleasure  to 
be  found  in  daydreams  in  which  we  lapse  again  into  our 
childhood  condition,  of  wishes  being  gratified  without  the 
use  of  means. 

Is  it  any  wonder  that  the  child  clings  to  this  world  of 
personal  power  in  which  wishes  bring  their  own  fulfill- 
ment ?  Poets  always  dwell  much  in-  this  world,  while  the 
most  original  scientists  and  inventors  find  in  it  possibili- 
ties which  later,  by  regulated  effort,  they  transform  into 
actualities.  Thus  all  through  life  there  is  contrast  and 
conflict  between  the  world  of  fancy  in  which  we  are  omnip- 
otent and  the  real  world  where  we  can  succeed  only  by 
almost  slavish  conformity  to  the  laws  of  the  universe  of 
which  we  are  a  part.  Yet  there  are  at  the  same  time  recip- 
rocal influences  by  which  law  is  brought  into  the  world  of 
fancy  on  the  one  hand  and  the  present  and  actual  changed 
into  the  future  and  the  ideal  on  the  other.  Only  by  proper 
balance  of  these  contrasts  and  relations  can  life  be  made 
both  sane  and  ideal.  Childhood  can  be  understood  and 
properly  nourished  into  usefulness  and  happiness  only  by 
recognizing  that  man  begins  by  being  omnipotent  in  the 
world  of  fancy  while  learning  the  laws  of  the  real  world  to 
which  he  must  conform  in  orderfto  become  really  power- 
ful and  efficient.  Children  are  thus  alternately  the  most 
idealistic  and  the  most  literal  of  creatures,  now  reveling 
in  fancies,  now  oppressed  by  realities  and  their  own  help- 
lessness. This  divine  spark  of  freedom  and  of  will  to  be 
and  to  possess  must  not  be  smothered. 

[88] 


EARLY  DEVELOf  M,E^T  OF  IMAGINATION 

EXERCISES 

1.  Report  the  earliest  evidence  of  expectation  on  the  part  of 
infants  that  you  have  noticed. 

2.  Report  the  earliest  case  of  evidence  of  memory  or  imaging  of 
an  object  not  in  sight  which  has  been  perceived  only  once  or  twice 
before. 

3.  Give  remarks  of  some  small  child  while  listening  to  a  story 
describing  the  doings  of  himself  or  others  which  show  what  mental 
pictures  he  is  forming. 

4.  Report  instances  of  the  tendency  to  animism  in  small  children. 

5.  Describe  some  ojf  the  earliest  dramatic  imitations  that  you 
have  observed. 

6.  Give  instances  of  reminiscence  on  the  part  of  young  children, 
and  also  of  anticipatory  imaging. 


[89] 


CHAPTER  X 

LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF   THE   IMAGINATION 

AS  AFFECTED   BY  AGE,  CIRCUMSTANCES,  AND 

INDIVIDUALITY 

The  chief  factors  involved.  A  complete  history  of  one's 
surroundings  and  of  his  imaginative  activity  at  various 
ages  would  not  only  be  an  illuminating  and  complete 
revelation  of  his  character  but  would  show  clearly  the 
stages  of  development  through  which  he  has  passed.  It 
would  seem  that  a  large  collection  of  the  imagings  of 
children  at  various  ages  would,  when  classified,  reveal 
general  truths  regarding  the  characteristics  of  imagina- 
tion and  the  stages  of  development  through  which  chil- 
dren pass.  The  author  has  collected  many  instances  of 
imagination  and  examined  them  with  this  end  in  view, 
but  has  found  definite  formulation  of  truths  difficult.  The 
natural  and  social  surroundings  of  children,  their  special 
experiences,  and  their  own  individuality  are  such  impor- 
tant factors  that  age  differences  are  obscured. 

The  influence  of  material  surroundings  and  of  special 
experiences  is  clearly  shown  in  the  following : 

When  nine  years  old  I  was  living  on  an  island  of  Puget 
Sound.  Our  home  being  on  the  shore  of  the  island,  we  girls 
found  much  pleasure  in  "  beach  combing."  In  fact,  the  low 
tides  usually  found  us  out  looking  for  shells,  starfish,  and  pretty 
sea  mosses.  At  times  of  extreme  tides  we  were  given  a  broader 
beach  to  search  and  quite  frequently  found  new  specimens. 

[90] 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

I  think  it  must  have  been  these  extreme  tides  which  caused  a 
secret  wish  that  the  water  would  go  out  of  the  Sound  for  a  period 
of  time  long  enough  to  search  the  bottom  of  the  ocean  in  that 
vicinity.  Many  times  I  found  myself  trying  to  imagine  what 
the  scene  would  be  in  such  a  case.  The  millions  of  fish,  sea 
plants,  animals,  and  wrecks,  also  money  and  valuables,  which 
I  could  picture  on  the  ocean  floor  are  still  very  plain.  The  most 
striking  'feature  of  this  imaginary  adventure,  however,  was  the 
awful  catastrophe  which  would  result  if  the  water  should  come 
back  suddenly  and  I  happened  to  be  some  distance  from  the 
shore.  The  thought  of  the  race  before  the  oncoming  wave  of 
water  still  revives  a  feeling  of  fear. 

A  short  time  after  we  moved  from  the  island  the  passenger 
boat  that  plied  between  our  town  and  Seattle  was  sunk  by  a 
collision  with  another  boat  in  a  dense  fog.  The  account  of  the 
disaster  brought  up  a  clear  picture  of  the  conditions  that  might 
have  occurred  during  the  sinking  of  the  boat.  I  could  see  a 
few  leaping  from  the  upper  decks,  but  most  of  the  passengers 
seemed  to  be  in  the  lower  cabins  and  their  rush  for  the  stairs 
or  doorways  was  most  pitiful.  Many  broke  windowpanes  in  an 
effort  to  escape,  but  the  water  rushed  in  with  terrible  force, 
causing  the  cabin  to  fill  in  almost  no  time.  The  boat  in  a  very 
short  time  had  found  its  way  to  the  ocean  bottom,  where  I  again 
could  see  it  as  the  water  receded,  and  I  was  investigating  the 
unknown  depths  of  the  sea.  I  was  twelve  years  old  at  this  time. 

The  effects  of  social  surroundings  and  especially  the 
influence  of  an  older  and  admired  companion  are  shown 
in  the  following  case  of  a  five-year-old  child  in  the  same 
house  with  a  normal  student : 

Almost  every  morning  E.  puts  something  edible  in  a  bag 
while  I  am  putting  up  my  lunch,  and  keeps  bustling  about, 
keeping  up  a  rapid  fire  of  exclamations  such  as,  "  My,  don't  we 
have  to  hurry  for  that  car!"  "Never  do  to  be  late  in  my 

[90 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

school,  will  it  ? "  While  I  am  making  my  bed  she  spreads  hers, 
saying,  "  Can't  go  and  leave  our  rooms  looking  like  this,  can 
we  ? "  She  puts  on  her  hood  and  coat,  gathers  up  all  the  books 
she  can  carry,  hurries  with  me  out  of  the  door,  and  says,  "  My 
car  does  n't  go  the  way  yours  does."  Her  mother  tells  me  that 
after  she  has  walked  up  and  down  in  front  of  the  house  a  num- 
ber of  times  she  comes  into  the  dining  room  and  spends  hours 
either  getting  her  reading  or  spelling  lessons  or  pretending  she 
is  a  teacher ;  always  eats  her  lunch  before  she  "  comes  home  " 
from  school. 

The  other  evening  she  saw  the  grade  cards  that  I  use  in  the 
training  school,  and  immediately  wanted  to  know  what  they 
were  for.  After  explaining  them  I  gave  her  some,  and  each  day 
until  she  tired  of  it  she  would  come  and  show  .me  the  marks 
the  dog  and  cat  had  received. 

Individuality  is  prominent  in  the  following  reminis- 
cence, although  the  person  is  very  suggestible  and  the 
imagination  changes  with  age : 

One  day  when  I  was  four  years  old  I  saw  my  mother  look- 
ing over  the  garden  with  a  troubled  expression.  She  said,  "  The 
rabbits  are  eating  up  the  lettuce.  I  am  afraid  we  '11  have  to  put 
salt  on  their  tails  and  catch  them."  The  next  morning  I  went 
to  the  garden  with  a  sack  of  salt  and  caught  sight  of  a  "  cotton- 
tail "  eating  lettuce.  I  ran  after  her  shrieking,  "  Here,  Molly 
Cottontail,  salt  1  salt  1  salt ! "  but  she  scampered  off,  and  I 
was  left  standing  there  looking  over  the  garden  hedge,  holding 
my  salt,  with  tears  of  disappointment  in  my  eyes.  I  felt  that  I 
must  catch  those  rabbits,  so  I  set  about  sprinkling  salt  on  every 
weed  that  was  high  enough  for  a  rabbit  to  run  under,  thinking 
perhaps  some  would  fall  off  on  their  tails  and  they  would  be 
caught.  I  went  off  to  the  grape  arbor  and  there  fell  to  playing 
with  my  dolls,  thinking  that  in  the  morning  I  would  find  scores 
of  rabbits  sitting  in  the  shade  of  all  of  the  weeds  in  the  garden. 

[92] 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

They  would  all  be  pink  and  would  lay  pink  eggs,  and  instead  of 
the  yearly  "  corn  carnival,"  that  was  a  very  festive  occasion  in 
Nebraska,  they  would  have  me  give  a  parade  with  my  rabbits. 
We  would  descend  from  the  clouds  above  the  Methodist  church, 
I  sitting  in  a  pink  wagon  drawn  by  rabbits  as  big  as  horses, 
that  I  had  made  fat  by  feeding  them  on  corn  cobs  (a  commodity 
used  for  fuel  on  account  of  the  abundance  of  corn  in  this 
region).  I  would  wear  a  pink  hood,  and  all  the  rest  of  the 
rabbits  would  pull  wagons  of  pink  eggs,  and  at  the  end  of  the 
parade  I  would  have  a  pink  dog  walking  beside  a  pink  cat 

My  sister,  who  was  about  eight  years  of  age  at  the  time  I 
was  five,  came  to  me  in  the  garden  one  day  and  said,  "We 
must  make  a  sacrifice  and  atone  for  our  sins.  We  are  all 
sinners."  "  I  am,  am  I  ? "  said  I.  "  Well,  1 11  break  your  doll, 
if  you  say  I'm  a  sinner."  "  Now  listen,"  she  said,  "you  are  a 
sinner  and  so  am  I,  and  we  must  sacrifice  the  best  thing  we 
have."  My  father  had  given  us  each  a  solid  gold  link  bracelet 
with  a  padlock  in  the  form  of  a  tiny  heart  and  a  little  gold  key 
only  a  few  days  prior  to  this,  and  both  of  our  minds  flew  to 
our  bracelets.  "  Yes,"  she  said,  "  we  must  sacrifice  our  brace- 
lets," and  we  went  to  the  house  and  got  them  and  returned  to 
the  garden.  She  picked  out  a  currant  bush  in  the  most  remote 
corner  of  the  yard  and  said,  "  We  will  bury  these  forever.  Dig 
a  hole  —  now  dig  one  for  me."  "  Dig  your  own,"  I  said,  for  I 
didn't  care  much  about  the  whole  proposition,  anyhow.  We 
buried  them,  and  she  said  a  prayer  over  them.  Next  she  said, 
"  Now  shut  your  eyes  and  walk  fifty  steps  before  you  open 
them."  We  both  did  so  and  when  we  opened  them,  for  the 
life  of  us  we  could  n't  tell  which  bush  we  had  buried  the  brace- 
lets under.  "If  you  look  for  that  bracelet,"  she  told  me,  "every 
gooseberry  in  the  garden  will  turn  into  a  stone,  and  every  robin 
will  die  this  winter  because  they  have  n't  anything  to  eat" 

I  imagined  the  robins  would  lose  their  toes,  wings,  and  beaks 
if  they  didn't  have  gooseberries,  and  finally  they  would  lose 
their  feathers  and  turn  into  fishes.  The  next  day  I  wanted  my 

[93] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

bracelet  and  hunted  for  it.  So  did  she,  and  we  hunted  for  over 
a  month  but  never  found  them. 

We  had  a  bed  of  tansy  in  the  yard,  and  everyone  knows  that 
ants  won't  go  near  tansy.  I  imagined  that  if  my  mother  would 
let  me  go  away  for  a  day  or  two  I  could  lay  rows  of  tansy 
around  the  world,  and  all  of  the  ants  would  jump  into  the  ocean. 
I  began  by  fringing  two  sides  of  our  yard  with  it  and  soon  got 
tired  of  the  proposition.  I  decided  that  since  the  ants  bothered 
our  neighbors  as  much  as  they  did  us,  that  they  could  help,  too, 
if  we  were  to  accomplish  the  deed. 

We  had  a  big  pine  tree  in  the  yard,  that  moaned  and  sighed 
at  night.  Many  is  the  box  of  headache  pills  that  I  buried  at 
the  foot  of  this  tree  to  relieve  it  of  its  pain. 

When  I  was  six  we  were  going  to  move  to  Wisconsin,  and 
I  imagined  some  very  definite  things  about  the  appearance 
of  the  place  in  which  we  were  to  live.  I  imagined  it  would 
be  a  big  yellow  house  on  the  edge  of  the  forest,  and  that  each 
day  I  would  take  my  dolls  to  a  lake  in  the  middle  of  the 
forest,  where  we  could  see  fairies  making  angel-food  cake  in 
the  hollow  trunks  of  trees  and  baking  it  on  the  sand  on  the 
banks  of  the  lake. 

My  sister,  of  whom  I  have  spoken  as  being  about  three  years 
older  than  myself,  used  to  tell  me  that  I  was  adopted  and  that 
my  name  was  Louise  Smith  before  I  came  to  live  in  her  house, 
and  that  was  the  reason  I  didn't  look  like  any  of  the  family. 
It  took  little  to  convince  me,  for  I  had  heard  many  visitors 
say,  "  Where  does  she  get  her  big  eyes  from  ? "  u  Her  hair 
is  not  the  color  of  anyone  else's  in  the  family."  "  She  does  n't 
act  like  either  her  brother  or  sister,"  etc.  I  imagined  that  I 
had  been  the  child  of  very  wealthy  parents,  and  that  one  day 
when  my  mother  was  shopping  I  had  gone  for  a  long  ride  by 
myself.  I  had  ridden  so  far  that  I  could  n't  find  my  way  home. 
I  believed  this  adopted  story  until  I  was  fully  twelve  years 
of  age,  and  when  in  a  melancholy  mood  I  would  cry  and 
beg  my  mother  to  tell  me  who  my  real  mother  was.  Then 

[94] 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

I  began  to  show  a  marked  resemblance  to  my  brother,  so  my 
convictions  were  slowly  shattered. 

When  I  was  about  twelve  years  old  I  got  an  idea  that  I 
wanted  to  go  to  boarding  school.  We  were  living  in  Denver, 
and  I  sent  for  every  catalogue  of  a  boarding  school  that  I  could 
find  in  magazine  advertisements.  I  daydreamed  for  months 
over  the  idea  and  made  up  my  mind  that  sometime,  when  I 
should  inherit  the  money  to  which  I  was  to  fall  heir,  I  would 
send  all  the  girls  to  boarding  school  who  wanted  to  go.  I  would 
have  a  big  summer  house  for  them  to  visit  in  Vermont  in  the 
summer,  because  it  was  too  far  back  to  Denver ;  I  would  have 
one  girl  become  an  artist,  one  a  pianist,  one  a  domestic-science 
teacher,  another  an  actress,  and  the  rest  should  all  get  married 
and  name  their  children  after  me. 

At  about  this  time  my  father  was  in  the  theater  business.  I 
went  to  the  theater  often  and  came  home  determined  to  be  a 
great  actress.  I  set  up  a  row  of  candlesticks  in  the  attic  for  the 
footlights  and  put  on  all  the  old  finery  of  my  grandmother 
that  was  kept  in  an  old  walnut  chest  in  a  dark  corner  of  the 
attic.  I  swept  across  my  improvised  stage  with  all  the  dignity 
of  an  empress.  I  talked  continually  to  my  gatekeeper,  gener- 
ally a  pile  of  blankets  near  the  door,  and  explained  how  I  should 
have  him  shot  at  dawn.  I  would  have  a  dagger  concealed,  and 
it  was  generally  a  pie  knife  with  a  black  walnut  handle.  I 
imagined  that  this  had  been  given  me  as  I  entered  the  prison 
gate  by  a  faithful  slave  of  my  husband,  who  was  sitting  in  the 
castle  bemoaning  the  loss  of  his  wife. 

About  this  time  (twelve  years  of  age)  I  was  studying  Africa 
in  geography,  and  one  morning  I  got  up  and  told  of  a  wonder- 
ful dream  I  had  had  of  a  trip  through  that  country.  My  father 
thought  it  was  so  remarkable  that  he  said  it  was  worth  printing. 
I  immediately  began  to  plan  my  coming  career  as  an  authoress, 
and  wondered  how  soon  I  could  get  money  enough  saved  to 
start  sending  girls  to  school.  My  nurse  had  always  tried  to 
make  me  sleep  on  my  right  side  so  I  wouldn't  dream,  and 

[95] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

whenever  I  wanted  a  good  dream  I  would  wait  until  she  had 
left  the  room  at  night  and  then  lie  on  my  back.  I  thought  per- 
haps I  could  sleep  on  my  back  at  night  and  would  dream  more 
and  perhaps  could  then  write  a  book  about  once  a  week. 

Characteristics  of  imagination  at  different  ages.  From 
a  large  number  of  papers  describing  the  imaginative  activi- 
ties of  children  the  following  are  taken  almost  at  random 
to  give  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  field  of  imagination  at 

>various  levels  from  two  to  sixteen.  At  two  and  three  ..' 
there  are  imaginative  imitations  of  making  pies  and  candy, 
bathing  children,  nursing  sick  dolls,  acting  as  huckster, 
groceryman,  and  jitney  driver,  telephoning,  and  playing 
on  the  piano.  There  are  also  many  instances  of  imaginary 
companions. 

At  ages  four,  five,  and  six,  besides  many  of  the  above 
activities,  there  are  tea  parties ;  acting  out  the  stories  of 
Uncle  Remus,  "  Three  Bears,"  etc. ;  planting  candy  and 
money,  hoping  for  an  increase ;  playing  conductor  of  a 
car ;  playing  church  and  Sunday  school ;  making  calls ; 
seeing  angels  in  the  clouds,  goblins,  giants,  and  all  sorts 
of  wild  animals  in  the  dark,  and  shooting  bears  and  lions 
in  the  daytime ;  making  up  little  stories  and,  in  several 
instances,  playing  with  imaginary  relatives. 

•7  For  the  ages  from  seven  to  eleven  there  are  instances 
of  impersonating  tree  dwellers,  an  Indian,  a  fairy  prin- 
cess and  various  characters  in  books;  of  having  tea  par- 
ties in  proper  form ;  teaching  school  and  using  school 
materials ;  telling  fairy  stories ;  dramatizing  a  funeral ; 
thinking  of  self  as  adopted  child ;  going  on  various 
voyages  as  captain ;  making  a  trip  to  Alaska ;  enacting 
the  battle  of  Manila ;  dressing  and  acting  the  part  of 
grown-ups ;  telling  bigger  stories  than  others  have  told ; 

[96] 


~?/ 
V 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

being  afraid  of  bears  in  the  woods  and  of  ghosts  at 
night;  playing  house  with  an  imaginary  husband. 

In  the  next  period,  twelve  to  sixteen,  we  have  fear  of 
dropping  baby  ;  fear  of  white  slavers  ;  daydreams  of  life 
in  England  with  real  and  imaginary  family  and  friends, 
also  as  a  school  teacher  ;  imagining  stories  like  those 
read  ;  writing  poetry  ;  daydreams  of  a  magic  typewriter 
""that  could  be  made  to  give  information  or  anything  else 
desired  ;  making  up  continued  stories  ;  imitation  of  sleight 
of  hand  and  imaginary  taking  part  in  a  game  of  football  ; 
visions  of  life  in  a  new  place,  induced  by  letters  of  a 
former  teacher  ;  imaginary  experiences  as  a  sailor  ;  dream- 
ing of  self  as  a  fine  lady,  later  with  many  lovers  ;  pictur- 
ing self  as  nurse  taking  full  charge  of  injured  persons 
in  an  imaginary  auto  accident. 

From  such  a  view  of  the  imagination  at  various  ages 
we  conclude  that  in  the  early  years  it  is  imitative  and  play- 
ful. The  influence  of  the  immediate  environment  is  also 
very  marked  in  the  imitation  of  persons,  processes,  and 
occupations.  Children  are  continually  playing  that  things 
and  persons  are~different  from  what  they  are  and  striving 
to  give  reality  to  their  mental  representations  by  appro- 
priate movements  either  with  or  without  objects  to  repre- 
sent the  things  or  people  involved.  They  delight  also  in 
taking  the  character  of  another  person  or  animal,  and 
imaginary  compaaions  are  especially  common.  At  the 
same  time  they  ascribe  personality  to  flowers,  trees,  and 
even  to  stones.  Food  and  fear  instincts  are  prominent 
stimuli  to  the  imagination. 

In  the  period  from  six  to  twelve,  imitations  of  social 
forms  are  numerous.  The  chief  stimulus  to  the  imagina- 
tion is  not  provided  by  the  surroundings  but  by  what  is 

[97] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

heard  of  distant  places  and  by  stories  ;  yet  environing  ma- 
terials are  utilized  in  making  the  representations.  Objects 
and  imitative  acting  are  still  used  to  give  reality,  but  not 
so  much  as  formerly,  while  expression  through  language 
is  much  more  prominent.  Fear  still  has  a  considerable 
place,  while  curiosity  stimulated  by  the  distant  and  the 
mysterious  often  leads  to  the  filling  in  of  details  by  the 
imagination.  Much  playful  imitation  of  adult  activities 
is  shown. 

/'  After  twelve,  objects  are  used  hardly  at  all  as  assistants 
to  the  imagination,  and  dramatic  action  is  less  common. 

i  There  is  more  serious  imitation  of  adults  and  adult  activi- 
ties. Fear  is  now  of  burglars  rather  than  of  bears,  and 
frequently  takes  the  form  of  social  fear,  or  bashfulness. 
The  future  rather  than  the  present  is  at  this  time  the 
basis  of  imaginative  construction,  and  the  scenes  are  often 
laid  in  distant  places.  The  sex  instinct  and  the  aesthetic 
impulse,  either  one  or  both,  now  have  a  prominent  place 
in  the  imagination. 

Periods  of  imaginative  development.  There  is  no  sharp 
break  in  the  development  of  the  imagination,  and  the 
changes  already  indicated  are  more  or  less  on  the  surface. 
There  are  deeper  processes  of  adjustment  of  the  mind  to 
the  universe  in  which  it  dwells.  The  prominent  phases 
of  these  integrations  and  readjustments  are  indicated  in 
what  follows  and  serve  as  a  means  of  distinguishing  the 
stages  of  development  of  the  imagination. 

After  children  have  gained  the  power  to  produce  and 
combine  images  they  frequently  revel  in  a  playful  use  of 
the  imagination,  in  which  things  are  given  whatever  quali- 
ties are  most  pleasing  and  brought  into  whatever  relation 
is  most  agreeable.  The  child  thus  makes  the  world  into 

[98] 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

what  he  wishes  it  to  be  at  the  moment,  but  during  all  his 
active  dealing  with  things  he  is  himself  becoming  im- 
pressed with  the  permanent  character  of  the  objects  with 
which  he  deals.  He  learns  something  of  the  laws  of  the 
world  in  which  he  lives,  and  which  he  cannot  change,  in 
contrast  with  the  imaginary  kingdom  over  which  he  has 
almost  complete  control.  Only  as  he  gains  knowledge  of 
things  as  they  are  can  he  direct  his  imaginative  activity  in 
representing  desirable  conditions  as  brought  about  through 
possible  means. 

At  this  stage  he  is  generally  introduced  through  stories 
and  the  reminiscences  of  elders  to  a  distant  world  differ- 
ing from  that  immediately  surrounding  him.  He  learns 
of  strange  objects  and  unfamiliar  events  governed  by  laws 
new  to  him.  At  about  the  same  time  he  is  also  made 
acquainted  with  the  realm  of  fairy  stories,, in  which  wishes 
have  much  the  same  place  as  in  his  earlier  playful  fancies. 
For  a  time  the  world  revealed  by  accounts  of  distant 
places  and  times  and  the  one  presented  by  the  fairy  story 
are  enjoyed  as  a  pleasing  contrast  to  the  prosaic  present 
and  are  not  clearly  differentiated  from  each  other.  Later 
the  child  distinguishes  between  these  two  realms,  just  as 
he  earlier  did  between  the  realities  of  sense  and  his  play 
fancies.  He  wants  to  know  whether  stories  are  true,  that 
is,  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  the  universe,  or  are 
merely  creations  of  fancy  and  fairyland. 

Interest  is  then  usually  centered  for  several  years  upon 
history  and  geography,  and  the  child  learns  much  regard- 
ing the  different  parts  of  the  earth  and  the  succession  of 
events  leading  to  present-day  civilization.  The  wish  and 
the  play  elements  at  this  time  demand  stories  of  adven- 
ture which  depict  a  more  rapid  succession  of  exciting  inci- 

[99] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

dents  than  is  supplied  by  daily  life  or  ordinary  geography 
and  history  study. 

With  the  dawning  of  adolescence,  and  the  emergence 
of  fresh  instincts,  and  new  social,  aesthetic,  and  moral 
interests  the  imagination  is  stimulated  to  greater  activity. 
At  this  time  the  wish  of  the  fairy  story  has  almost  no 
place,  but  the  most  desirable  of  all  that  is  possible  in  the 
real  world  is  chosen  for  attainment,  and  the  imagination, 
directed  by  what  is  known  of  the  laws  of  reality,  is  exer- 
cised in  representing  the  means  of  gaining  such  ends.  In 
this  period  of  idealism  the  wish  predominates  over  the 
probable,  but  is  not  directly  opposed  to  what  is  conceived 
as  possible.  The  problem  for  the  youth  and  the  man  is 
that  of  finding  means  of  harmonizing  his  desires  with  the 
actual  possibilities  of  life  as  presented  to  him,  taking  into 
account  his  individual  capacities  and  opportunities.  The 
imagination  is  continually  exploring  the  future,  while  the 
reason  decides  as  to  ends  and  directs  in  the  choice  of 
means  of  attaining  them. 

The  period  from  three  to  six  is  preeminently  the  time 
in  which  free  play  of  the  imagination  is  contrasted  with 
fixed  sensory  experiences  of  the  immediate  environment. 
From  six  to  twelve  the  imagination  is  occupied  with  con- 
structing the  distant  world  of  reality  and  perhaps  reveling 
in  a  fairyland  where  wishes  and  fancy  play  a  large  part. 
From  twelve  to  maturity  is  the  period  of  adventure, 
romance,  and  idealism  in  which  the  real  world  is  the 
theater  of  the  imagination,  but  the  desirable  is  selected 
and  action  is  speeded  up  and  intensified. 

The  chapters  that  follow  discuss  and  illustrate  some  of 
the  chief  features  of  the  imaginative  activities  of  these 
periods. 

[100] 


LATER  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 

EXERCISES 

1.  Illustrate  the  influence  of  environment  on  both  constructive 
and  creative  imagination. 

2.  Describe  the  characteristics  of  your  own  imagination  at  differ- 
ent periods. 

3.  What  characteristics  of  your  imagination  have  been  constantly 
present  at  all  ages  ? 

4.  To  what  extent  have  your  images  been  replaced  by  word  sym- 
bols and  your  plans  made  entirely  in  accord  with  facts  and  reason 
uninfluenced  by  fancies  and  desires? 


[101] 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 

Playing  with  images.  When  a  child  gains  the  power 
to  form  vivid  images  and  realizes  that  they  may  be  modi- 
fied and  combined  in  various  ways,  a  new  world  of  enjoy- 
ment is  open  to  him.  He  plays  with  images  as  he  plays 
with  toys.  The  world  of  reality  is  not  always  to  his  taste 
and  he  cannot  do  much  in  the  way  of  changing  it,  but 
he  may  choose  from  his  stock  of  mental  pictures  those 
that  are  agreeable  and  change  and  combine  them  at  pleas- 
ure. They  do  not  maintain  a  fixed  form  like  real  objects, 
nor  do  they  refuse  to  obey  his  wishes  as  people  often  do. 
This  activity  of  the  creative  imagination  usually  becomes 
prominent  between  three  and  five  and  continues  in  vary- 
ing degrees,  according  to  individuality  and  the  character 

of  the  social  environment,  even  into  adult  life. 

'  •    -  •'•'.•,' 

This  play  of  the  imagination  begins  in  dramatic  imita- 
tion, in  which  things  are  supposed  to  be  different  from 
what  they  really  are  and  where  the  child  modifies  the 
original  experience  to  suit  his  own  pleasure.  Jt  is  shown 
in  his  noting  of  fancied  resemblances  and  in  his  tendency 
to  animism.  He  pictures  objects  different  from  any  that 
he  has  known  and  often  tells  of  little  experiences  that  are 
imaginary.  Sometimes  he  seizes  upon  poetical  and  musi- 
cal phrases  and  combines  them  into  a  little  song  which 
he  enjoys  repeating.  Usually  he  is  more  interested  in  the 
character  of  the  souncfs  than  in  the  meanings  associated 
with  the  words. 

[102] 


THK  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 


The  Jreedom  with  which  he  invents  imaginary  experi- 
ences anjpV  describes  them  depends  upon  his  social  environ- 
ment. JH!^  there  is  someone  who  is  interested  and  amused 
he  is  stimulated  to  go  on  weaving  new  fancies.  If  he  is 
rudely  laughed  at  or  harshly  reproved  he  may  give  little 
intimation  of  his  imaginative  life,  but  in  a  large  propor- 
tion of  cases  he  will  continue  to  create  for  himself  experi- 
ences more  enjoyable  than  those  supplied  by  the  real  world 
in  which  he  lives. 

The  following  incident  told  of  a  four-year-old  boy  is  a 
good  illustration  of  playing  with  images  and  giving  reality 
to  the  performance  by  means  of  appropriate  movements: 

One  morning  my  sister  softly  called  me  and  tiptoed  out  on 
the  porch,  which  is  five  or  six  feet  higher  than  the  yard.  With 
a  motion  for  silence  she  pointed  out  Donald.  He  was  going 
through  apparently  aimless  motions.  But  as  I  watched  I  saw 
that  he  was  tying  something  around  a  post,  saying  as  he  did 
so,  "  Now  pony,  don't  you  pull  and  break  that  rope."  Then 
swinging  his  arms  and  with  an  important  air  he  marched  up 
to  the  corner  of  a  large  box  and  asked  for  his  mail,  meanwhile 
keeping  careful  watch  of  his  impatient  steed.  Putting  his  mail 
into  his  pocket  and  remarking  on  the  weather  to  an  imaginary 
postmaster,  he  strode  to  his  horse,  went  through  all  the  neces- 
sary motions  of  untying  and  throwing  rein  over  his  horse's 
head,  jumped  into  his  saddle,  and  was  off,  galloping  through 
the  gate  and  down  the  road,  all  of  this  without  even  the  custom- 
ary stick  or  string  with  which  most  children  play  horse.  A  day 
or  two  later  a  friend  called,  bringing  a  little  boy  of  six  .f  The 
other  children  had  gone  to  the  store  with  their  father  and) 
Donald  was  playing  outside  ;  so  we  sent  George  to  find  him. 
We  presently  heard  voices  under  the  window  and,  lifting  the 
sash  a  little  way,  I  listened.  Don  was  telling  George  to  go  in 
the  house  and  get  his  harness  which  was  hanging  on  a  certain 

[103] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

doorknob.  George  came  in  fully  expecting  to  find  a  harness  of 
some  kind,  but  not  even  a  string  was  to  be  seen.  He  went 
back,  saying  that  it  was  n't  there.  Don  came  in  and,  in  a  very 
businesslike  manner,  walked  up  to  the  doorknob,  lifted  the 
harness  off,  and  walked  out,  George  following.  Of  course 
George  couldn't  understand  what  Don  was  doing,  but  Don 
didn't  know  that.  He  began  to  harness  his  team  of  mules, 
talking  to  them,  calling  them  by  name,  —  Liz  and  Sue,  Pete 
and  Punch,  etc.,  — [telling  George  to  look  out  or  he  would  get 
his  head  kicked  off.")  Finally  he  threw  the  lines  to  George,  tell- 
ing him  to  hold  the  team  while  he  opened  the  gate.  It  was  too 
much  for  George, 'who  disgustedly  turned  away,  telling  Don  he 
was  crazy,  and  came  into  the  house.  Donald  merely  looked 
after  him  in  surprise,  glanced  up  and  saw  me,  smiled  in  a  shy 
way  he  had,  picked  up  his  lines,  and  drove  his  team  through 
the  gate  and  away. 

Influences  affecting  creative  activity.  The  pleasure  that 
the  child  derives  from  dramatic  imitations,  in  which  inci- 
dents are  reproduced  at  will  in  entirely  new  settings,  to- 
gether with  his  experience  in  ascribing  to  objects,  animate 
j   and  inanimate,  characteristics  and  feelings  which  he  has 
\  observed  in  persons,  prepares  the  way  for  the  creative 
1  imagination  and  stimulates  it  to  activity.  In  dramatizing  an 
event  the  child  reproduces  only  the  parts  which  are  most 
interesting  to  him,  and  presently  he  may  add  or  substitute 
objects  or  incidents  not  in  the  original  which  give  a  more 
pleasing  effect.  Thus  does  the  creative  imagination  become 
active,  and  many  children  derive  more  pleasure  from  its 
exercise  than  from  most  of  their  real  experiences. 

The  child's  desires  are  strong,  and  at  first  he  knows ' 
little  of  the  fixed  character  of  things  and  the  laws  gov- 
erning them,  so  he  often  modifies  them  in  fancy  according 
to  his  pleasure.    A  boy  of  six  planted  some  melon  seeds 

[104] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 

which  never  came  up.  Often,  when  going  to  visit  the 
spot,  he  pictured  so  vividly  the  vine  as  grown  and  with 
large  melons  that  he  actually  had  some  expectation  of 
finding  it  true  and  was  disappointed  to  see  only  the 
bare  ground.  When  a  child  imagines  things  and  persons 
as  being  and  doing  what  he  wishes,  but  without  having 
any  actual  experience  with  them,  there  is  no  check  upon 
the  imagination  and  he  may  create  a  world  of  his  own 
which  is  to  him  a  vivid  reality.  One  young  woman  writes : 

Once  I  remember  looking  up  into  the  clouds  and  seeing 
a  towered  city  there  shining  in  the  sun.  I  imagined  that  it  was 
real  and  sometimes  looked  for  it  afterward.  Another  time  I 
imagined  that  I  was  an  angel,  and  ran  about  flapping  my  hands 
and  feeling  very  ethereal.  Remembering  that  angels  conducted 
souls  to  heaven,  I  ran  to  my  mother  and  inquired,  "Are  you 
dead  ? "  She  did  not  understand  my  play  and  began  to  talk 
seriously  to  me,  whereupon  I  dropped  my  celestial  role  and  ran 
away  to  hide  behind  the  clothes  basket  in  the  laundry. 

Even  in  the  period  of  playful  imagining,  when  desire 
and  fancy  have  most  influence,  there  is  a  strong  tendency 
to  complete  and  make  vivid  every  idea  suggested,  whether 
the  result  is  agreeable  or  not.  Only  the  child  with  initia- 
tive and  will  power  invents  a  world  according  to  his  de- 
sires. Others  merely  construct  a  more  definite  world  of 
whatever  type  is  suggested  to  them.  In  response  to  this 
tendency  every  person  mentioned  is  imaged  in  greater  or 
less  detail.  For  example,  one  young  lady  reports  that 
she  even  imaged  in  detail  the  "farmer"  when  playing 
"  Farmer  in  the  Dell."  Imaginary  beings  such  as  the 
sandman,  fairies,  Santa  Claus,  are  definitely  imaged  even 
when  pictures  of  them  have  not  been  seen.  One  child 
imaged  the  sandman  thus  :  "  I  thought  that  every  night 

[105] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

after  I  had  gone  to  bed  a  very  large  man  with  a  bag  of 
sand  on  his  shoulder  flew  into  my  room  and  sprinkled 
sand  over  my  head,  which  put  me  to  sleep." 

Another  says :  "  I  imagined  the  sandman  going  along 
the  beach  filling  his  bag  with  sand  and  then  about  dusk 
coming  around  to  all  the  houses  and  sprinkling  sand  over 
us."  Doubtless  the  writer  was  familiar  with  the  beach 
and  the  habits  of  hucksters,  and  this  knowledge  was  re- 
flected in  the  imagery  produced  by  talk  of  the  sandman. 
One  child  imagined  a  picture  so  vividly  that  she  could 
scarcely  realize  that  it  had  not  been  a  reality,  and  many 
children  of  four  to  seven  tell  wonderful  imaginary  tales 
which  they  sometimes  actually  believe.  This  should  not 
be  regarded  as  lying,  but  children  should  be  led  to  dis- 
tinguish clearly  between  the  imaginary  and  the  real. 

The  fact  that  many  children  do  construct  a  literal 
Santa  Claus  or  sandman  emphasizes  the  importance  of 
the  caution  that  such  personages  should  be  presented  to 
children  in  a  playfid  manner.  This  helps  to  prevent  a 
mythical  personage  from  becoming  too  real  in  the  child's 
mind.  Thus  he  may  pass  insensibly  from  the  first  con- 
crete representations  into  an  appreciation  of  the  more 
abstract  spirit  or  force  symbolized.  That  children  are 
sometimes  severely  shocked  when  they  find  Santa  Claus 
is  not  real  is  not  due  so  much  to  the  fact  they  have  been 
told  stories  about  him  as  it  is  to  the  literal  and  serious 
manner  in  which  he  has  been  described. 

Present  objects  and  events  as  well  as  past  experiences 
are  often  woven  into  imagery,  as  when  a  little  girl  thought 
that  a  large  house  near  her  home  was  a  fairy  palace,  and 
another  thought  she  saw  Heaven  through  the  clouds.  This 
is  also  shown  in  the  case  of  the  little  girl  who  said  that 

[106] 


thunder  was  God  knocking  on  the  floor  of  Heaven,  and 
of  another  who  thought  that  the  Sunday-school  superin- 
tendent was  God^  since  he  was  to  her  the  principal 
personage  in  "  God's  house." 

Besides  this  general  tendency  to  weave  into  fancy  what- 
ever knowledge  or  experience  one  possesses,  there  are 
two  important  factors  involved  in  imagination,  namely,  a 
lack  of  defmiteness  in  the  stimulating  object  or  idea  and 
an  emotional  interest  of  some  kind  impelling  one  to 
mental  activity  along  the  line  suggested.  Cloud  forms 
and  the  flames  of  an  open  fire  have  always  inspired  the 
imagination.  We  see  "castles  in  Spain,"  characters  in 
song  and  story,  visions  of  the  past  and  future,  according 
to  our  surroundings,  previous  experience,  and  mood. 
Mysterious  actions  and  words  are  effective  stimuli  to  the 
imagination  of  many  persons.  Music  and  works  of  art, 
especially  pictures  which  are  vague  in  detail,  poems  or 
stories  which  suggest  rather  than  express  situations  and 
emotions,  may  appeal  strongly  to  the  imaginative  faculty. 

In  no  case  will  any  of  these  stimuli  produce  much 
activity  of  the  imagination  unless  they  arouse  some  feel- 
ing. On  the  other  hand,  if  emotion  of  any  kind  has 
already  been  stirred,  almost  any  indefinite  stimulus  may 
result  in  great  activity  of  the  imagination  along  the  lines 
suggested  by  that  emotion.  Indefinite  shapes  or  unrecog- 
nized sounds  may  fill  the  mind  of  a  timid  child  with  pic- 
tures of  bears  and  wolves  ready  to  attack  him  or  of  a 
"black  man,"  "rag  pickers,"  or  "gypsies"  waiting  to 
carry  him  off. 

In  all  such  cases  the  child  has  little  or  no  control  of 
his* imagination  and  lacks  knowledge  with  which  to  com- 
bat his  fears.  The  images  come  without  his  volition,  and 

[107] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

the  distressing  scene  proceeds  in  spite  of  any  effort  he 
may  make  to  end  it.  The  child  lying  helpless  in  the  dark, 
with  fear-inspiring  images  aroused  by  indefinite  stimuli, 
is  in  quite  a  different  situation  from  the  boy  in  daylight, 
shouldering  his  gun  to  shoot  lions  that  his  eyes  tell  him 
are  not  there.  Older  children  and  adults  may  gain  a  con- 
trol of  imagery  somewhat  independent  of  physical  circum- 
stances, but  to  the  small  child  this  is  impossible ;  rather, 
in  his  case,  imagination  possesses  and  controls  him. 

Imaginary  companions.  From  earliest  infancy  people  are 
the  most  interesting  things  in  a  child's  environment.  It 
.-'  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  they  should  occupy  a  promi- 
nent place  in  his  mental  operations  and  creations.  Not 
only  may  he  endow  all  the  objects  of  nature  with  the 
characteristics  of  human  beings,  and  imagine  the  per- 
^onalities  of  people,  including  his  own,  as  changed,  ^but 
he  creates  new  characters  to  serve  his  purposes.  In  his 
dramatic  play  he  takes  great  pleasure  in  acting  as  if  he 
were  a  dog,  a  bird,  a  horse,  an  Indian,  a  policeman,  a 
circus  man,  or  a  general.  When  he  assumes  another  per- 
sonality than  his  own  he  not  only  acts  in  the  way  that 
seems  to  him  appropriate  but  he  desires  other  people  to 

treat  him  in  a  manner  befitting  the  character.    He  fre- 
^  ^*"* 

quently  has  very  definite  ideas  of  what  is  necessary  to  the 

part  and  may  go  to  a  great  deal  of  trouble  in  order  that 
everything  may  be  carried  out  in  just  the  right  way. 

This  is  often  one  of  the  peculiar  features  of  creative 
imagining  even  when  it  is  supposed  to  have  free  play. 
The  child  is  dealing  with  things  over  which  he  has  con- 
trol, and  yet  he  seems  to  feel  bound  by  some  law  to  which 
his  imaginative  creations  must  conform.  In  children  of 
an  artistic  and  poetic  temperament  beauty,  as  in  the  case 

[108] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 

of  adult  artists,  may  be  the  controlling  law,  but  in  a  large 
proportion  of  cases  the  law  to  which  their  imagery  must 
conform  is  based  upon  some  kind  of  similarity  or  analogy 
to  what  obtains  in  the  real  world  as  they  know  it. 

In  playing  with  dolls  the  child  often  gives  a  definite 
individuality  to  each  one  and  then  requires  that  it  shall 
maintain  those  characteristics.  One  little  girl  carried  this 
individualization  so  far  that  when  one  of  the  dolls  with 
which  she  was  carrying  on  an  imaginary  conversation 
replied  just  as  she  had  planned  for  it  to  reply  she  was 
displeased,  because  she  wanted  that  one  to  be  more 
independent  and  original. 

In  playing  with  real  things  which  he  has  endowed  with 
imaginary  characteristics  the  child  is  rarely  if  ever  deceived 
into  believing  that  they  actually  have  these  characteristics. 
His  senses  contradict  his  images,  so  that  the  thing  as  it 
is  contrasts  with  what  he  imagines  it  to  be  ;  but  by  acting 
as  if  it  were  the  thing  he  imagines  it,  and  getting  other 
people  to  act  in  the  same  way,  he  is  able  to  produce  a 
semblance  of  reality  which  is  no  less  pleasing  because  he 
is  conscious  of  the  fact  that  he  himself  has  supplied  the 
characteristics  which  it  does  not  really  possess. 

Many  children,  during  the  age  of  make-believe,  not 
only  give  personality  to  objects,  and  modify  in  imagina- 
tion the  characteristics  of  individuals,  but  they  create  new 
personalities.  To  such  creations  the  name  "  imaginary 
^  companions  "  has  been  given.  It  was  formerly  thought 
that  only  children  who  had  few  or  no  real  playfellows 
ever  indulged  in  such  fancies,  but  inquiry  reveals  the 
fact  that  a  great  many  adults  remember  having  had  such 
companions  in  childhood,  and  since  it  has  been  demon- 
strated that  children  who  at  three  or  four  talk  a  great 

[109] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

deal  about  their  imaginary  playmates  may  be  utterly  unable 
to  remember  a  few  years  later  that  they  ever  had  any  such 
intimates,  it  would  probably  not  be  an  overestimate  to  say 
that  at  least  three  fourths  of  all  children  have  had,  at  some 
time,  one  or  more  imaginary  companions. 
y  Not  always  are  these  companions  wholly  imaginary; 
often  the  fictitious  person  is  represented  by  some  real 
object  and  occasionally  by  an  animal,  such  as  a  cat  or  a 
pony.  In  other  instances  there  is  nothing  to  represent 
the  absent  person  who  is  not  purely  imaginary,  but  some 
one  known  or  heard  of.  Sometimes  it  is  found  that  the 
casual  mention  of  some  individual  has  led  the  child  to 
construct  an  ideal  personality  suggested  by  the  remark 
and  to  adopt  him  as  a  playfellow. 

Again,  he  may  be  a  character  in  the  child's  dramatic 
representation,  such  as  a  pupil  or  a  policeman,  but  not 
endowed  with  individuality.  Sometimes  the  imaginary 
playmate  is  not  a  person  but  a  pet,  such  as  a  dog  or  a 
horse.  Oftentimes  the  desire  for  a  brother  or  sister  leads 
to  the  creation  of  an  imaginary  one.  A  little  girl  of  four 
who  delighted  in  telling  of  the  deeds  of  her  imaginary 
brother  one  day  looked  very  sad  as  she  told  that  her 
brother  was  very,  very  sick.  "  We  must  take  him  to  the 
hospital.  He  has  appendicitis."  Later  she  had  a  little 
party  in  celebration  of  his  home-coming.  The  first  of  the 
following  accounts  was  given  by  a  little  girl  ten  years  old : 

I  have  had  two  imaginary  friends.  I  was  about  eight  years 
old.  I  had  them  for  my  pupils  when  playing  school,  and  my 
children  when  playing  house.  One  of  my  imaginary  friends 
was  a  little  girl  named  Marion.  The  other  was  a  boy  named 
George.  I  do  not  have  make-believe  friends  now.  I  am  too 
old  to  have  them. 

[no] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 

M.,  a  little  boy  of  three  years,  had  an  imaginary  friend, 
Harbell.  When  M.  had  his  bath  he  made  believe  Harbell  was 
with  him,  and  he  would  splash  water  all  over  him.  He  greatly 
enjoyed  this  friend  and  played  with  him  until  he  was  five  years 
old.  No  one  knew  where  he  heard  the  name  "  Harbell." 

One  day  little  E.,  aged  three,  came  into  her  mother's  sewing 
room.  Going  up  to  her  mother,  she  said,  in  a  very  shy  way, 
"  Mother,  I  have  a  little  new  friend,  Bessie,  and  here  she  is." 
The  mother  greeted  the  little  new  friend,  saying,  "  How  do  you 
do,  Bessie.  I  am  very  glad  to  see  you."  There  was  no  little 
girl  present.  E.  played  with  this  imaginary  friend  until  she  was 
five  years  old. 

A  little  girl  of  three  has  an  imaginary  friend,  "  Twinkles." 
One  day  her  grandfather  came  into  the  living  room  and  went 
to  sit  down  in  the  comfortable  chair,  when  the  little  girl  cried, 
11  O,  grandfather !  don't  sit  there,  Twinkles  is  sitting  there." 

Although  children  who  are  alone  a  great  deal  may  feel 
the  need  of  such  companions  more  than  others,  yet  chil- 
dren with  many  playmates  may  get  much  pleasure  from 
them.  The  imaginary  companion  is  much  more  tractable 
than  real  playmates  and  is  especially  appreciated  after 
a  real  companion  has  proved  uncongenial  or  contrary. 
Sometimes  two  or  more  children  may  join  in  playing  with 
an  imaginary  companion.  Often,  however,  if  they  are  of 
about  the  same  age,  and  almost  equally  imaginative,  they 
cannot  agree  upon  the  characteristics  and  details  of  be- 
havior of  the  unseen  playmate.  In  such  cases  if  they 
can  take  some  real  object  and  give  it  a  personality  which 
it  is  supposed  to  maintain  day  after  day,  then  this  imag- 
inary companion  may  be  accepted  and  enjoyed  by  both. 
Where  one  child  has  an  imaginary  companion,  and  an- 
other child  manifests  interest  in  it  and  does  not  attempt 

[in] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

to  modify  its  characteristics,  then  they  may  play  with  it 
quite  successfully  for  some  time. 

In  connection  with  imaginary  companions  there  is  not 
only  a  good  deal  of  dramatic  play  but  also  the  construct- 
ing of  imaginary  experiences. 

When  a  child  I  used  my  imagination  most  in  playing  house 
and  school.  My  sister  and  I  played  together.  She  lived  in  one 
room  and  I  in  another.  Another  room  was  used  for  stores  and 
a  post  office.  We  went  to  imaginary  stores  and  bought  imagi- 
nary goods.  On  our  way  to  a  store  or  the  post  office  we  often 
met  imaginary  people  to  whom  we  said  "  good  morning."  Our 
imaginary  butcher  and  baker  called  for  orders.  Sometimes  I 
expected  company  from  Boston  and  went  to  the  station  to  meet 
the  visitor.  All  the  way  home  we  chatted.  Sometimes  I  talked 
for  myself  and  sometimes  for  her.  I  brought  her  home  with 
me,  gave  her  tea,  and  took  her  to  see  my  sister.  Then  we  both 
entertained  her  as  we  saw  our  mother  entertain  her  guests.  At 
other  times  we  got  into  the  hammock  and  swung  and  swung 
until  we  got  to  Boston.  Then  we  got  out  and  met  imaginary 
friends  who  took  us  home  with  them.  Next  we  went  shopping. 
When  our  shopping  expedition  was  over  we  told  our  friends  we 
were  so  sorry  we  must  go  home.  Then  we  hurried  to  catch 
our  train  which  was  the  hammock. 

In  playing  school  we  arranged  chairs  just  as  the  desks  are 
arranged  in  school.  In  these  chairs  we  had  make-believe 
scholars,  as  we  used  to  call  them.  We  whipped  imaginary  chil- 
dren and  reported  them  to  an  imaginary  superintendent.  Thus, 
in  everything  we  played  we  used  our  imagination. 

^     Sometimes  these  invisible  personages  furnish  a  con- 
venient means  of  shifting  responsibility  for  behavior. 

M.  and  L.,  two  sisters  ten  and  eight  years  old,  played  with 
some  brownies  made  of  paper.  Every  night,  before  the  girls 
went  to  tea,  they  turned  everything  upside  down  in  their  doll 

[112] 


house  and  in  their  own  pretty  room.  When  their  mother  asked 
the  reason  for  all  the  disorder,  the  girls  said,  "  Oh,  the  brownies 
did  it."  They  played  this  so  much,  and  their  play  seemed  so 
real,  that  at  last  all  their  errors  and  misdeeds  were  blamed  upon 
the  brownies. 

Another  child  has  two  imaginary  playmates,  one  of  whom  is 
responsible  for  all  his  bad  behavior,  the  other  for  his  good 
conduct 

The  little  girl  whose  companion  is  told  of  in  the  fol- 
lowing instance  had  a  strong  love  of  caricature. 

Mr.  Bauban  seemed  from  the  first  to  be  a  grotesque.  He 
lived  in  the  ground,  was  wholly  deformed,  had  but  one  eye,  was 
an  amusing  companion  rather  than  a  lovable  one,  and  could  be 
called  forth  at  will  by  stamping  upon  the  ground.  He  origi- 
nated, I  have  thought,  from  a  desire  for  ready  reference  in  case 
of  quandary.  For  instance,  in  reply  to  "  Why  did  you  do  so  ? " 
"  Mr.  Bauban  told  me  to  do  it."  "  I  knew  it,  because  Mr.  Bauban 
said  it  was  so,"  etc. ;  this  while  she  yet  lisped  the  words.  He 
was,  in  a  way,  a  defense  in  which  she  fondly  hoped  we  would 
believe.  She  always  seemed  amused  at  this  gnome  she  had 
herself  called  into  being;  it  pleased  her  to  see  us  puzzled  by 
his  impish  and  unaccountable  ways.  She  would  describe  at 
length  his  menage  underground,  his  cook,  his  winding  passages, 
his  essaying  forth  to  market  or  to  visit  He  did  not  come  forth 
at  night.  This  did  not  occur  to  her,  as  she  could  not  grasp  the 
fact  that  anything  went  on  at  night.  She  put  him  safely  under- 
ground herself  before  she  went  into  the  house  for  bed. 

A  delightful  bon  mot  seemed  to  end  the  existence  of 
Mr.  Bauban.  When  we  went  into  the  Boston  subway,  with  a 
sigh  of  satisfaction  she  said,  "  This  is  where  Mr.  Bauban  lives." 

The  child  enjoys,  in  imagination,  experiences  different 
from  any  that  he  has  ever  had,  and  in  many  cases  persons 
whom  he  knows,  perhaps  more  or  less  transformed,  as  well 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

as  purely  imaginary  people,  play  a  considerable  part  in  these 
incidents.  The  following  illustrates  the  peculiar  fancies  of 
children,  especially  those  deprived  of  ordinary  pleasures: 

Little  E.,  who  was  a  delicate  child  and  unable  to  run  and 
play  with  the  other  children,  used  to  go  into  the  living  room, 
shut  the  door,  take  her  kitty  by  the  tail,  and  spin  it  round  and 
round.  She  would  make  believe  that  the  motion  was  a  part  of 
herself.  It  would  seem  so  real  that  the  motion  became  a  part 
of  her  very  being,  and  she  would  make  her  "  motion  self  "  do 
all  sorts  of  interesting  things. 

In  another  of  her  motion  plays  she  made  believe  she  could 
fly.  She  would  make  the  "  motion  self  "  become  a  bird  form 
which  she  called  her  "  bird  self,"  and  when  she  could  n't  run 
and  play  with  the  other  children,  she  would  make  believe  she  was 
a  bird  and  play  that  the  bird  was  active,  just  as  the  children  were. 

She  played  with  flowers,  made  believe  they  were  actors  and 
actresses,  and  had  plays  lasting  several  weeks.  Sometimes  she 
made  believe  the  flower  actors  were  people,  at  other  times  she 
kept  them  flower  actors.  This  same  little  girl  made  companions 
of  the  trees ;  sometimes  they  were  silent  friends,  sometimes 
Indians,  ghosts,  or  fairies. 

Frequently  the  same  people  appear  in  a  series  of  events, 
and  the  result  is  a  sort  of  continued  story.  Inquiry  re- 
veals the  fact  that  a  good  many  people  have  at  some  time 
in  their  lives  created  such  tales,  and  many  of  them  con- 
tinue the  practice  in  adult  life.  Doubtless  some  novels 
are  the  outcome  of  such  imaginative  early  fiction,  origi- 
nated without  any  intention  of  writing  a  story.  This, 
however,  is  more  common  in  the  next  period. 

A  young  woman  writes : 

\    I  often  took  pansies  for  dolls  because  of  their  human  faces  ; 
the  rose  I  revered  too  much  to  play  with.    It  was  like  my  best 


THE  PERIOD  OF  IMAGINATIVE  PLAY 

wax  doll,  dressed  in  her  prettiest,  but  always  sitting  in  state  in 
a  big  chair,  in  some  secluded  corner  where  little  visitors  would 
not  spy  her  out.  I  loved  these  nature  dolls  far  better  than  the 
prettiest  store  dolls,  and  ascribed  special  psychic  qualities  to 
them.  Violets  were  sturdy  little  ones,  who  enjoyed  a  frolic  and 
could  be  played  with.  The  pansy  was  a  quick,  bright  flower 
child ;  the  rose,  her  grown-up  sister,  pretty  always,  charmingly 
dressed,  but  a  quiet  and  sedate  spectator.  The  hepaticas  were 
delicate  children,  invalids  and  cripples  to  be  tenderly  cared  for. 
They  watched  their  livelier  brothers  and  sisters  and  were  enter- 
tained by  stiff  maiden  aunts,  marigolds,  with  long  curls.  The 
dahlias  were  colored  servants ;  yellow  violets  were  mischievous, 
fun-loving  boys;  sweet  peas  were  the  nurses,  with  cap  and 
kerchief;  the  morning-glories  were  governesses  and  teachers. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Give  illustrations  of  the  playful  imaging  of  children  in  connec- 
tion with  objects. 

2.  Describe  in  detail  an  instance  of  imaginary  companionship. 

3.  Give  various  illustrations  showing  what  stimulates  the  imagina- 
tion of  children  of  three  to  six  and  of  the  way  in  which  they  express 
or  accompany  their  mental  picturing. 

4.  If  an  older  person  definitely  asks  children  to  imagine  certain 
things  and  tells  them  what  to  do  in  connection  with  this  mental 
picturing,  are  the  children  getting  training  in  constructive  or  in 
creative  imagination? 

5.  If  the  teacher  merely  suggests  by  words  or  acts  and  encourages 
the  children   to   represent  the  details,  what   kind  of  imaginative 
activity  is  being  encouraged? 

6.  Report  some  kindergarten  exercise  and  discuss  its  value  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  preceding  questions. 


CHAPTER  XII 
CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WORLD 

The  period  of  constructive  imagination.  Although 
there  is  more  or  less  use  of  the  constructive  imagination 
in  early  childhood  and  thenceforth  into  adult  life,  its  em- 
ployment in  mentally  representing  the  real  world  is  most 
prominent  in  the  period  from  seven  or  eight  to  twelve. 
Earlier  than  this  the  imagination  is  more  fanciful  and 
playful,  while  later  it  is  replaced  in  part  by  symbolic 
thinking.  That  constructive  imagination  is  prominent  at 
this  time  is  due  as  much  to  social  and  school  influences 
as  to  any  fundamental  change  in  the  child's  natural  tend- 
encies. He  still  inclines  to  represent  things  according 
to  his  desires  or  as  his  emotions  impel  him,  but  experi- 
ence teaches  him  that  it  usually  pays  to  picture  things  as 
they  are,  and  nearly  all  his  school  training  is  in  the  direc- 
tion of  requiring  him  to  image  in  accordance  with  the 
teaching  of  adults.  There  is  probably  also  a  natural  tend- 
ency at  this  time  to  classify  and  correlate  his  mental 
pictures. 

Comparing  and  constructing.  A  child  often  hears  of 
persons,  places,  and  incidents  through  the  conversation 
of  those  around  him  and  is  stimulated  to  picture  them. 
Later  he  perhaps  has  the  opportunity  of  seeing  the  per- 
sons or  places  mentioned  or  of  witnessing  events  such 
as  he  has  heard  described,  and  he  naturally  compares 
his  memory  images  with  the  realities.  This  process  is 

[116] 


CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WQRLD 

continued  into  adult  life,  and  imagination  in  this  way  is 
influenced  more  and  more  by  the  real  world. 

The  following  is  a  good  example  of  the  way  in  which 
the  distant  in  time  and  place  may  stimulate  to  the  forma- 
tion of  definite  images : 

When  I  was  ten  years  of  age  we  planned  and  undertook  a 
trip  east  to  New  York  State.  The  planning  was  the  part  we 
youngsters  enjoyed,  as  we  settled  in  our  minds  just  what  we 
would  take  t&  eat  and  wear  and  how  every  part  of  the  country 
would  look,  as  we  traced  our  journey  on  a  railroad  map.  We 
imagined  just  how  it  would  seem  at  grandpa's,  in  the  little  vil- 
lage, and  at  grandma's,  on  the  farm.  All  our  greetings  and 
actions,  we  agreed,  should  carry  out  the  "wild  and  woolly  West" 
idea,  so  that  our  Eastern  cousins  (three  and  five  years  old) 
should  know  we  were  from  a  very  different  sort  ort-otHtfry.  We 
laid  plans  for  horseback  rides  on  the  farm  in  such  detailed  fashion 
and  widi  such  enthusiasm  that  we  experienced  more  delight 
than  we  could  ever  realize.  Our  greeting  for  old  and  feeble 
grandma  was  all  planned  exactly  as  we  expected  to  execute  it 
We  even  drilled  on  it,  as  we  sat  on  the  front  steps  talking  it  over. 

In  listening  to  stories  and  descriptions  the  child  under- 
stands what  he  hears  only  by  comparing  the  objects  and 
incidents  mentioned  with  those  in  his  own  experience. 
At  first  the  images  derived  from  familiar  surroundings 
dominate  his  mental  construction  of  the  objects  and  events 
described,  and  reminiscences  of  his  own  past  experiences 
contribute  largely  to  his  enjoyment  of  stories.  The  child 
insists  upon  certain  tales  being  repeated  over  and  over 
until  they  take  a  form  of  reality  in  his  mental  life  and 
become  a  basis  for  understanding  other  stories. 

Later  the  child's  constructive  and  creative  imagination 
is  greatly  stimulated  by  descriptions  of  objects  and  events 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

which  contrast  sharply  with  those  that  he  has  experi- 
enced. This  is  one  reason  why  stories  of  giants  and 
dwarfs  are  so  enjoyable  and  why  fairy  stories,  in  which 
things  happen  so  quickly  and  in  such  marvelous  ways, 
are  sources  of  pleasure.  Such  stories  may  for  a  time  sup- 
plant the  child's  interest  in  real  life.  Usually,  however, 
he  compares  the  world  of  every  day  with  this  imaginary 

v  world  and,  through  contrast,  gets  a  better  idea  of  realities. 
It  is  not  necessary,  however,  that  stories  and  descrip- 
tions shall  be  of  giants,  dwarfs,  and  fairies  in  order  that 
the  imagination  may  be  stimulated  and  impressive  com- 
parisons made.  The  child  may  be  told  stories  of  his 
parents'  youth  amid  surroundings  quite  different  from  his 
own,  or  he  may  have  descriptions  of  foreign  countries  with 
their  strange  animals  and  plants,  where  the  dress  and 
customs  of  the  people  vary  greatly  from  those  familiar 
to  him.  Stories  of  history  and  biography  also  give  valu- 
able material.  In  all  these  cases  the  child  compares  his 
own  personal  experiences  with  the  realities  of  other  times 
and  places  and  constructs  a  picture  of  the  real  world  which 
is  much  broader  and  more  varied  than  had  he  depended 
on  his  experiences  alone.  In  proportion  as  his  imagina- 
tion is  vivid  and  his  constructions  in  accordance  with  de- 
scriptions does  he  acquire  knowledge  similar  to  that  which 
may  be  obtained  by  years  of  travel  and  observation. 

?  Truth  and  fancy.  Tales  of  giants  and  fairies,  historical 
and  geographical  stories,  alike  open  the  door  to  a  new 
realm  of  imagination  which  is  contrasted  with  the  world 

..pf  his  personal  experiences.  The  principal  difference  be- 
tween these  stories  lies  in  the  greater  freedom  of  the  fairy 
tale  as  compared  with  stories  of  real  life  in  which  events 
are  governed  by  fixed  laws.  Children  usually  recognize 

[118.] 


CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WORLD 

this  difference  and  frequently  ask  whether  a  story  is  true. 
This  tendency  should  be  encouraged,  and  rather  a  sharp  \ 
distinction  should  be  drawn  between  fairy  stories  and  those 
concerned  with  real  things  and  events.  _One  should  feel 
in  listening  to  a  fairy  story  that  he  is  living  in  a  different  ( 
world,  a  world  of  playful  and  enjoyable  fancy.    For  this  / 
reason  literal  descriptions  of  things  as  they  are,  if  used 
at  all,  should  be  chiefly  by  way  of  contrast.    Thus  the 
child  may  enjoy  to  the  full  this  realm  of  fantasy  (which 
has  no  laws  except  those  of  pleasure  and  beauty)  and,  at 
the  same  time,  gain  a  knowledge  of  the  world  of  reality 
in  which  there  is  less  freedom  and  where  natural  laws 
determine  the  course  of  events. 

,  Myths  and  legends  introduce  the  child  to  the  story  land 
of  ancient  peoples,  and  although  stimulating  and  interest- 
ing they  are  sometimes  confusing.  Some  of  them  are  the 
fancies  of  those  who  lived  in  the  dawn  of  time,  while 
others  represent  their  imperfect  conceptions  of  the  world 
about  them.  Such  stories  do,  however,  reveal  to  a  more 
mature  mind  the  world  of  which  the  ancients  conceived 
as  distinctly  different  from  the  well-ordered  universe  of 
present-day  scientific  thought. 

The  imaginary  made  real.  If  the  child  pictures  vividly 
and  accurately  the  world  beyond  his  limited  horizon,  as 
it  is  and  has  been,  he  has  acquired  new  and  more  varied 
material  with  which  his  imagination  may  work.  His 
broader  knowledge  of  things,  of  people,  and  of  the  forces 
and  influences  back  of  natural  phenomena  and  historical  X 
events  stimulates  his  imagination  to  new  activity  and 
directs  its  constructions  in  harmony  with  the  possible  and 
probable.  Through  the  medium  of  language  and  pictures 
the  child's  environment  is  immensely  enlarged,  and  this 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

wider  domain  may  become  almost  as  real  to  him  as  the 
x,  narrower  one  in  which  he  has  his  physical  being.  Irje 
may  compare  his  mental  images  of  places,  industries,  and 
events  with  pictures  and  descriptions  in  much  the  same 
way  as  he  formerly  compared  his  anticipations  of  the  sea- 
shore or  of  the  mountains  with  the  real  experiences.  With 
the  knowledge  that  he  has,  he  may  form  mental  pictures 
of  probable  events,  while  the  daily  news  reports  help  him 
to  verify  and  correct  the  anticipatory  constructions.  He  is 
thus  enabled  to  participate  not  only  in  the  real  experi- 
ences of  the  immediate  neighborhood  but  also  in  the 
broader  life  of  the  world  as  revealed  in  newspapers  and 
magazines  and  in  geography  and  history.  The  follow- 
ing are  good  examples  of  anticipatory  constructions  of 
possible  events : 

I  used  to  plan  long  journeys  and  imagine  our  getting  ready, 
what  we  should  do  while  on  the  journey,  and  what  we  should 
see  and  do  after  reaching  our  destination.  I  always  liked  to 
imagine  people  whom  I  had  never  seen  but  of  whom  I  had 
often  heard  my  mother  tell.  When  I  reached  high  school  I 
began  to  imagine  myself  as  a  teacher.  I  pictured  the  school 
I  should  teach,  and  this  varied  from  a  consolidated  school  in 
the  country  to  a  small  log  cabin  out  in  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
I  pictured  my  brother  and  little  sisters  growing  up  and  planned 
futures  for  them.  I  worked  out  beautiful  plans  for  the  house 
and  farm  and  introduced  all  sorts  of  labor-saving  devices  for  my 
mother.  I  think  that  all  of  my  imaginative  activity  lately  has 
been  along  this  line,  continually  picturing  the  future. 

Once  I  was  disappointed  because  rain  prevented  my  going 
to  F.,  eight  miles  away  from  my  home.  I  had  been  planning  to 
see  a  moving  picture,  "  Desert  Gold,"  and  as  a  substitute  I 
made  up  an  imaginary  story,  in  moving-picture  form,  about  the 

[120] 


CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WORLD 

Arizona  desert.  While  my  physical  being  was  washing  dishes 
and  ironing,  my  mind  was  far  away  among  sagebrush  and 
cactus,  working  out  my  imaginary  picture.  I  still  tell  stories  to 
myself,  especially  at  night,  for  I  can  think  better  in  the  dark. 
My  imagination  has  made  life  much  more  interesting  to  me, 
and  I  hope  that  it  will  continue  to  do  so. 

Individual  construction.  Although  constructive  imag- 
ination is  directed  mental  activity,  and  a  writer,  speaker, 
or  teacher  seeks  to  produce  the  same  mental  pictures  in 
all  minds,  yet  such  a  result  never  follows.  Descriptions 
are  frequently  incomplete,  hence  there  is  always  an  oppor- 
tunity for  the  reader  or  listener  to  fill  out  the  details  from 
his  experience  or  according  to  his  fancies.  Not  only  do 
individual  images  differ  but  also  the  manner  in  which 
they  are  classified  and  correlated.  For  these  reasons  chil- 
dren in  the  same  environment  construct  quite  different 
worlds. 

This  is  especially  marked  in  those  who  have  independ- 
ence and  originality.  Such  children,  though  often  seem- 
ingly realistic,  are  intensely  imaginative.  They  are  eager 
to  gain  material  with  which  their  imagination  may  occupy 
itself  and  to  learn  the  truth  about  things,  but  they  wish 
to  represent  them  in  their  own  way.  They  do  not  want 
fanciful  accounts,  but  desire  to  work  out  their  own 
fancies  in  connection  with  the  truths  they  have  acquired. 
An  extreme  example  of  this  tendency  is  described  by 
J.  K.  Folsom.1  After  the  period  of  playful  imagination, 
in  which  spools  and  other  objects  were  used  to  represent 
individuals,  real  and  imaginary,  he  began  at  about  eight 
years  of  age  to  make  more  rigid  scientific  classifications. 
For  several  years  he  was  intensely  interested  in  the  abstract 

1  Pedagogical  Seminary,  Vol.  XXII,  pp.  161-182. 
[121] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

truths  of  science,  to  which  he  gave  reality  by  associating 
them  with  objects  of  his  play  world,  now  carefully  classi- 
fied and  interrelated  in  a  logical  way.  Truth  and  logical 
reasons  as  he  conceived  them,  rather  than  desire,  fancy, 
or  sentiment,  controlled  all  his  mental  constructions.  For 
several  years  he  lived  in  this  imaginary  world,  which 
was,  however,  constructed  in  accordance  with  the  laws 
governing  the  real  world  in  somewhat  the  same  manner  as 
a  parable  or  allegory  resembles  reality. 

In  the  case  of  L.  C.  Day,1  similar  independence  was 
shown.  He  gave  expression  to  his  imaginary  experiences 
in  a  little  paper  which  he  published.  He  made  much  use 
of  real  things  and  events,  but  instead  of  merely  picturing 
what  he  heard  he  invented  incidents  and  thus  was  a  sort  of 
god  who  determined  what  should  happen  in  his  universe. 

"  Una  Mary " 2  also  had  a  self-made  world,  but  the 
controlling  principle  in  her  constructions  was  not  scien- 
tific truth  or  personal  power,  but  sentiment  and  artistic 
fancy.  She  invented  many  words  to  express  feelings  and 
situations  not  recognized  in  ordinary  language. 

All  children  show  in  a  greater  or  less  degree  this  tend- 
ency to  construct  a  world  different  from  that  presented 
to  them  by  books  and  people.  Only  a  few  do  this  com- 
pletely, intentionally  varying  from  realities.  The  majority 
accept  the  world  in  the  main  as  they  find  it  and  as  it  is 
represented  to  them  by  others,  but  fill  in  the  unsupplied 
details  in  their  own  way.  The  following  is  an  instance 
of  definite  construction : 

When  I  was  eleven  years  old  I  moved  to  the  country  and 
here  I  delighted  in  nature.  I  used  to  watch  the  birds  and  think 

1  Pedagogical  Seminary,  Vol.  XXI,  pp.  310-320. 
a  Scribner's  Magazine,  1914. 

[122] 


CONSTRUCTING  THE  REAL  WORLD 

how  it  would  seem  to  be  a  bird.  I  could  imagine  a  person 
changed  to  a  bird. 

When  I  became  older  I  used  to  imagine  how  the  surround- 
ings about  my  house  looked  before  there  were  any  houses.  I 
can  see  now  the  pine  woods,  and  the  long  stretch  of  land  with 
the  apple  orchard  on  it,  and  the  hills  in  the  distance. 

I  have  always  wished  to  go  abroad,  and  I  used  to  imagine 
myself  on  a  large  steamer,  sailing  across  the  waters  and  visiting 
the  different  countries. 

Some  picture  in  general  what  is  described,  but  in  the 
way  that  is  the  easiest  and  most  pleasing  to  them.  For 
example,  one  girl  represented  the  Southern  states  as  cov- 
ered with  fruit  trees,  and  she  pictured  oranges  rolling  on 
the  streets  to  be  picked  up  by  anyone  who  wanted  them. 
In  other  cases  the  imagination  is  more  passive  and  pic- 
tures only  in  accordance  with  descriptions,  and  that  per- 
haps with  no  great  vividness.  Such  persons  need  objects, 
models,  diagrams,  illustrations,  and  dramatic  representa- 
tions in  order  that  they  may  vividly  and  completely 
construct  what  is  described. 

This  more  passive  use  of  the  constructive  imagination  / 
is  favored  by  the  extensive  use  of  pictures  in  teaching 
and  by  stories  of  all  kinds  which  give  details  instead  of 
stimulating  their  independent  representation. 

Definite  types  of  images  as  well  as  forms  of  construc- 
tion   often    develop.    Numbers,    days    of    the  week,   or   j 
months  of  the  year  may  be  thought  of  as  always  arranged  / 
in  certain  ways. 

One  child  of  eight  personified  all  the  numbers  and 
kept  that  imaginative  arrangement  until  fifteen  years  old. 
She  had  them  act  out  dramas,  a  sample  of  which  is  given 
on  the  following  page. 

[123] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

1,2,  and  3  were  children ;  4  was  a  woman,  good  and  self- 
sacrificing;  5,  a  mischievous  young  scamp;  6,  an  amiable 
prince;  7,  an  arrant  rogue;  8,  a  high-born,  haughty  lady. 
5  coaxes  an  innocent  child  to  run  away  from  home.  He  runs 
until  he  reaches  10.  He  stops  on  the  way  to  help  6,  but  cannot 
get  him  into  12,  where  he  wanted  to  go,  so  he  drops  him  next 
door  to  12.  The  designing  7  persuades  5  to  help  him  instead 
of  6  into  12,  etc.  — Pedagogical  Seminary,  Vol.  II,  p.  107 

EXERCISES 

1.  To  what  extent  do  you  construct  in  detail  that  which  is  men- 
tioned either  with  or  without  complete  description  ?    Is  this  tendency 
decreased  with  experience  or  is  it  merely  regulated  more  completely 
in  accordance  with  real  events  ? 

2.  If  children  are  asked  to  illustrate  or  dramatize  a  story  which 
they  have  read,  interesting  examples  of  the  way  in  which  they  con- 
struct in  response  to  more  or  less  complete  descriptions  will  probably 
be  obtained. 

3.  If  it  be  admitted  that  fanciful  stories  of  beauty  or  those  con- 
veying social  or  moral  truths  are  valuable  in  training  the  imagination 
of  children,  does  it  follow  that  nature  myths  and  others  which  indi- 
cate the  scientific  and  religious  ideas  of  the  ancients  are  better  for 
them  than  modern  nature-study  stories  which  are  in  accordance  with 
present-day  scientific  conceptions?  Should  the  ancient  myths  be  given 
at  all  except  incidentally  in  contrast  with  present-day  conceptions  ? 

4.  Reports  should  be  given  of  imaginative  constructions  in  con- 
nection with  various  subjects  studied.    Are  mistaken  constructions 
due  to  any  extent  to  methods  of  teaching? 


[I24] 


CHAPTER  XIII 
THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 

The  imagination  of  the  adolescent.  The  imaginative 
activity  of  the  adolescent  differs  considerably  from  that 
of  the  two  earlier  periods.  It  is  less  playful,  less  asso- 
'  ciated  with  physical  action  than  in  early  childhood,  richer 
in  material  derived  from  experience  and  reading,  but  with 
images  generally  less  vivid  than  those  formed  during  the 
preceding  period,  when  the  world  was  being  constructed 
in  imagination  partly  as  it  is  and  partly  in  accordance 
with  individual  fancy.  The  wish  to  actually  experience 
what  is  imagined  is  now  much  stronger.  Tp^  dream  of 
other  lands  and  far-away  scenes  and  people  is  not  enough, 
but  there  is  a  keen  desire  to  really  see  them.  Most  young 
people  long  to  travel  and  frequently  spend  many  hours 
in  imagining  themselves  going  from  place  to  place,  hav- 
ing thrilling  experiences  in  the  countries  of  which  they 
have  heard.  They  are  also  no  longer  satisfied  to  merely 
learn  of  what  has  been  and  is  being  done,  but  they  desire 
a  share  in  the  world's  work,  and  this  gives  rise  to  dreams 
of  social,  philanthropic,  or  scientific  achievements.  His 
>  more  subjective  condition  of  mind  leads  the  youth  to  pro- 
ject himself  into  the  world  of  reality  which  he  created  in 
the  preceding  period  and  keeps  him  from  revealing  his  f 
imaginative  activity  by  outward  actions  as  he  formerly  did. 
This  development  of  a  more  distinct  inner  life  is  partly 
the  result  of  new  instincts  and  feelings  that  come  into 

[125] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

prominence  at  this  age.  These  make  the  youth  sensitive 
to  a  greater  degree  and  in  different  ways,  and  as  a  result 
his  imagination  is  largely  controlled  by  new  desires. 

One  who  has  little  to  occupy  or  interest  him  may  have 
his  character  weakened  by  excessive  indulgence  in  imag- 
inative fancies  unchecked  by  real  experience  or  increasing 
knowledge  of  realities  and  unassociated  with  any  plans 
for  definite  action.  On  the  other  hand,  one  who  is  over- 
worked and  has  no  energy  left  for  new  interests  may  lack 

\  the  opportunity  for  that  imaginative  picturing  of  what 

\rnay  be  done  and  gained  which  is  the  chief  stimulus  to 

7  ambition,    fortunate  is  the  youth  who  has  plenty  of  work 

and  something  to  be  interested  in  every  day  of  the  week, 

i  but  who  has  some  leisure  in  which  to  do  as  he  likes,  and 
indulge  in  daydreams  of  a  golden  future. 

In  imagination  the  young  person  may  compete  with 
others  on  the  athletic  field,  in  the  classroom,  and  in  the 
world  of  industry,  science,  art,  or  literature,  but  the  imag- 
inative anticipation  of  what  is  to  be  done  or  enjoyed  in 
the  immediate  future  is  checked  and  controlled  more  and 

_more  by  new  experiences.  In  a  similar  way  more  remote 
ambitions  are  modified  and  directed  by  increasing  knowl- 
edge of  how  success  has  been  attained  by  others  in  various 
lines  of  endeavor.  By  means  of  the  imagination  prelimi- 
nary explorations  are  made  into  the  unknown,  and  in  the 
light  of  present  conditions,  and  a  knowledge  of  what  others 
have  done,  plans  are  made  which,  even  if  not  carried  out 
in  detail  at  once  or  later,  yet  influence  future  life  and 
character.  The  changes  in  objective  action  and  the  still 
greater  changes  in  mental  life  which  take  place  during 
the  adolescent  period  are  frequently  very  marked,  and  all 
the  imaginative  activity  of  this  period  doubtless  modifies 

[126] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 

the  future  either  positively  or  negatively,  although  some 
of  it  seems  to  reflect  only  passing  whims.  The  following 
reminiscences  are  typically  adolescent : 

When  I  was  about  fifteen  years  old  I  began  to  be  very  self- 
conscious  and  to  be  very  particular  about  my  personal  appear- 
ance. Before  this  time  I  do  not  remember  of  ever  having  paid 
much  attention  to  my  looks.  I  also  grew  very  sensitive  and 
thought  that  I  had  a  "  temperament "  of  finer  grain  than  that 
of  other  people.  I  wanted  to  be  alone,  where  I  could  imagine 
how  some  ideal  person  would  pity  me  for  the  lack  of  sympathy 
from  other  people,  and  I  could  not  understand  why  my  parents 
insisted  on  my  being  so  much  in  the  company  of  others.  I  very 
frequently  had  "  crushes  "  on  older  women,  my  mother  included. 
All  the  others  did  not  last  long,  but  the  deep  feeling  I  had  so 
suddenly  for  my  mother  developed  into  a  love  and  friendship 
which  has  never  grown  less. 

I  was  deeply  interested  in  religion,  loved  to  attend  revival 
meetings,  and  was  indignant  when  my  parents  refused  to  allow 
me  to  take  certain  pledges. 

My  moods  were  constantly  changing  from  the  greatest  hilarity 
to  the  deepest  gloom.  I  was  ashamed  of  myself  for  this  when 
I  saw  how  even  tempered  older  people  were,  as  a  rule,  but  I  was 
powerless  to  restrain  my  own  impulses.  At  times  I  would  feel 
so  ashamed  of  myself  for  being  so  sensitive  that  I  would  put 
myself  as  much  as  possible  with  other  people,  and  even  open 
up  opportunities  for  them  to  say  things  which  would  be  apt  to 
hurt  my  feelings,  that  I  might  prove  to  myself  and  them  that 
I  had  outgrown  my  sensitiveness.  Then  a  time  was  always  sure 
to  come  which  found  me  so  hurt  that  I  would  literally  have  to 
be  forced  to  go  and  meet  people  again.  I  remember  also  that, 
at  about  this  age,  three  or  four  times  it  happened  that  when 
dressed  to  go  to  church  with  the  rest  of  the  family,  for  no  reason 
I  knew  of,  I  would  positively  refuse  to  go  to  church,  and  would 
feel  like  crying  instead. 

[127] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

During  all  this  time  of  about  three  years,  however,  I  realized 
that  my  mental  condition  was  not  as  it  should  be,  and  I  con- 
stantly strove  to  become  more  like  my  mother. 

There  was  a  girl  I  knew  who  up  to  her  fourteenth  year  used 
to  be  considered  a  quiet,  shy  little  backward  child,  without 
many  interests,  given  much  to  crying,  very  sensitive,  very  stu- 
dious. However,  in  about  her  fourteenth  year  she  began  to 
develop  an  interest  in  athletics ;  gradually  basket  ball,  gymna- 
sium work,  tennis,  and  skating  took  their  place  in  her  sphere  of 
interests,  and  she  changed  wonderfully.  Not  only  did  her  physi- 
cal health  improve  but  her  disposition  changed  from  a  decidedly 
disagreeable  one  to  a  happy,  cheerful,  healthy  attitude.  She  has 
continued  to  develop  along  this  line  and  is  now  one  of  the  most 
charming  girls  I  know. 

The  alteration  which  took  place  in  my  behavior  during  one 
year  of  my  life  certainly  was  "  sudden."  One  summer  my  be- 
havior was  characterized  by  a  sort  of  nervous  restlessness  and 
unwonted  activity.  It  seemed  that  I  had  to  be  doing,  doing, 
doing  things  all  the  time.  The  least  thing  new  aroused  my 
enthusiasm.  I  became  almost  a  "  faddist "  in  my  zeal  for  cer- 
tain things,  was  especially  fond  of  flowers,  and  "  raved  "  over 
ordinary  sunsets  in  spite  of  the  teasing  of  my  friends.  I  seemed 
to  be  continually  trying  to  create  excitement  and  was  usually 
successful.  I  was  classified  as  the  "  impulsive  type,"  but  during 
the  following  winter  and  spring  I  seemed  to  "  settle  down  "  more 
and  almost  approached  the  other  extreme,  became  disinterested 
in  many  of  my  former  "  fads,"  made  fewer  plans  for  doing 
things,  rested  more,  became  less  confident  of  myself,  in  contrast 
with  my  former  attitude  that  nothing  was  too  big  or  impossible 
to  attempt.  My  friends  noticed  the  change  and  instead  of  teas- 
ing to  restrain  my  exuberance,  made  efforts  to  arouse  me  to 
my  former  self.  Gradually,  however,  a  normal  condition  set 
in,  and  I  enjoyed  a  happy  medium  between  the  two  extremes. 

[128] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 

I  was  very  ambitious  for  honors  at  school  in  studies  as  well 
as  in  social  phases  of  the  school  life,  wanted  to  be  considered 
popular,  and  was  quite  selfish  in  my  views  for  a  while.  I  began 
to  be  less  "  afraid  of  boys,"  joined  a  dancing  class  and  enjoyed 
it,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  I  used  to  think  "  boys  were  horrid  " 
before  that.  I  was  influenced  by  a  young  lady,  a  graduate  of 
Vassar  College,  who  was  interested  in  settlement  work,  and 
taught  in  our  school  for  a  year,  and  desired  to  enter  the  same 
field  of  work.  I  used  to  be  very  fond  of  children  and  longed 
to  be  able  to  help  the  poor  suffering  mass  of  humanity  in  the 
crowded  parts  of  big  cities.  I  read  many  stories  of  tenement 
life,  which  developed  a  broad  sympathy  and  altruistic  ideals. 

I  was  always  writing  something  new  in  the  story  line.  Many 
a  time  I  Ve  written  a  story  when  studying  seemed  to  be  out  of 
the  question.  Also  my  creative  imagination  found  vent  in  my 
music,  which  I  began  to  study  soon  after  the  age  of  twelve. 
Pieces  and  even  the  prettiest  of  my  exercises  had  a  picture 
woven  into  their  music.  So  it  seems  that  the  very  simple 
images  which  I  formed  when  young  helped  to  increase  my 
powers  of  imagination  as  I  grew  older. 

I  used  to  dream  of  being  a  wonderful  violinist,  piano-player, 
singer,  reader,  and  master  of  almost  all  the  careers  I  had  knowl- 
edge of.  I  also  dreamed  of  traveling  all  over  the  world. 

Daydreams  may  be  of  great  advantage  if  a  young  per- 
son is  led  to  live  out  some  of  the  ideals  they  represent.  If 
a  girl  dreams  of  doing  deeds  of  mercy,  that  attitude  of 
mind  may  become  such  a  part  of  her  that  she  will  inevi- 
tably perform  such  deeds.  If  a  boy  dreams  of  being  a  hero, 
7  he  is  more  than  likely  to  become  one.  Daydreams  are  a 
disadvantage,  however,  when  they  get  so  "far  away  from 
real  life  that  they  have  no  bearing  upon  it.  When  a  young- 
ster has  the  loftiest  kind  of  daydreams  but  few  ideals  for 
everyday  life,  he  is  not  the  easiest  person  to  live  with. 

[129] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

Life  idealized.  There  may  be  daydreaming  in  some 
form  at  almost  any  time  of  life,  but  the  typical  period  for 
such  dreams  is  from  about  fourteen  to  eighteen.  _Day- 
~s  dreams  are  less  playful  and  fanciful  than  the  creative 
imaginings  of  earlier  years.  The  world  of  daydreams  is 
not  a  fairy  realm  but  the  real  world  partly  made  over 
according  to  one's  desires.  What  is  represented  is  not 
absolutely  impossible  in  the  world  as  it  exists,  although 
it  may  be  extremely  improbable.  .T^^d^i^g-JIL  ^ f 
always  plays  a  prominent  part.  Not  only  his  surround- 
ings but  the  youth's  personality  is  idealized,  with  some  of 
his  powers  increased  to  an  extraordinary  degree,  and  he 
is  the  center  of  events  which  bring  to  him  the  greatest 
pleasure  and  honor.  Daydreams  are  usually  anticipatory 
rather  than  reminiscent  and  are  nearly  always,  to  a  con- 
siderable extent,  directed  by  wishes  or  desires.  Some- 
times they  have  a  backward  look,  as  when  one  represents 
the  brilliant  things  he  might  have  said  or  done  until  he 
feels  as  if  he  had  acquitted  himself  very  creditably.  The 
following  are  typical : 

In  my  daydreams  I  was  either  some  favorite  character  in  a 
a  book  or  some  person  whom  I  very  much  admired ;  I  was 
always  the  center  of  attraction.  Oftentimes  I  lived  over  again 
experiences  which  were  past  and  in  which  I  had  had  an  insig- 
nificant part,  but  in  the  dream  I  was  the  chief  actor.  I  was 
always  witty  and  an  excellent  talker  in  my  dreams,  while  in 
reality  I  was  the  opposite. 

I  used  to  dream  about  many  things.  Often  it  was  about 
characters  in  books,  whose  actions  I  would  go  over  and  often 
revise  to  suit  myself.  Often  I  would  dream  of  my  friends  and 
what  I  would  like  them  to  do.  But  always  I  myself  would  have 
some  part  in  the  actions  of  the  others  (and  most  often  it  was 


THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 

the  chief  part)  when  I  would  imagine  the  others  admiring  me. 
I  used  to  dream  of  myself  as  a  great  actress,  and  I  would  go 
over  and  over  the  picture  of  myself  in  great  successes,  singing 
some  wonderful  song  on  the  stage  before  an  applauding  house. 
Very  often  after  this  I  would  dream  I  was  a  master,  such  as 
Beethoven,  giving  a  wonderful  concert  before  people  who  fairly 
worshiped  me.  This  kind  of  dreaming  was  not  wholly  bad,  for 
it  would  spur  me  on  to  do  my  practicing  regularly  and  thought- 
fully. It  was  in  this  way  connected  with  real  life.  The  dreams 
that  did  me  harm  were  of  the  sentimental  sort,  which  had  no 
connection  with  my  real  life,  only  made  me  extremely  sensitive, 
and  made  me  think  I  was  possessed  of  some  fine  temperament 
above  others. 

Romantic  imagination.  Nearly  all  daydreams  are  in 
a  sense  romantic  in  character.  The  most  interesting  and 
remarkable  things  of  which  the  individual  knows  are 
represented  as  entering  into  his  life  in  various  forms. 
There  is  much  that  is  commonplace  and  monotonous  in 
the  objects,  persons,  and  events  of  everyday  life,  and  he 
finds  much  pleasure  in  representing  himself  as  meeting 
new  people,  manifesting  extraordinary  powers,  and  enjoy- 
ing all  sorts  of  delightful  experiences  or  the  most  thrill- 
ing adventures.  Many  of  these  imaginings  are  associated 
with  idealized  individuals  of  the  opposite  sex.  Material 
gained  from  history  and  from  fiction  is  drawn  upon  in 
creating  the  ideal  life  of  romance,  but  the  self  is  nearly 
always  prominent.  Novels  do  not  produce  these  romantic 
tendencies  but  minister  to  them  and  determine  in  some 
degree  the  form  which  they  take. 

Ambition.  Daydreams  are  to  some  extent  prophecies 
as  to  the  individual's  future.  This  is  not  necessarily  true 
of  the  objective  events  which  occur,  but  it  is,  to  a  greater 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

or  less  extent,  as  regards  the  characteristics  ascribed  to 
himself.  This  is  especially  true  when  the  youth  in  his 
daydreams  represents  himself  as  putting  forth  extreme 
effort  and  persevering  until  success  is  reached.  The  kind 
of  success  attained  in  the  future  may  vary  considerably 
from  that  which  is  pictured  in  daydreams,  but  the  effort 
that  one  imagines  himself  to  put  forth  is  likely  to  be  real- 
ized if  at  the  time  of  such  imaginings  the  youth  is  actively 
engaged  in  achieving  athletic,  scholastic,  or  other  successes. 
This  is  the  time  when  it  is  of  most  importance  that  he 
shall  become  acquainted,  either  in  real  life  or  through 
history,  literature,  or  science,  with  great  personalities. 

The  following  will  serve  as  a  typical  example  of  a  girl's 
daydreams : 

During  this  period  of  daydreams,  I  was  self-conscious  to  the 
extent  that  I  always  knew,  or  at  least  thought  I  knew,  when 
people  were  talking  about  me,  and  I  was  never  satisfied  until 
I  knew  what  was  said  and  was  eager  for  compliments.  If  I  had 
a  gown,  suit,  or  hat  which  I  thought  was  becoming  to  me,  I 
looked  for  admiration  and  was  disappointed  if  I  did  not  get  it. 

I  always  recited  and  took  part  in  amateur  performances  a 
great  deal,  and  expected  compliments  afterward.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  performing  before  people  and  receiving  so  many  com- 
pliments helped  to  increase  my  self-consciousness.  I  used  to  sit 
and  dream  of  a  day  when  I  would  be  world-renowned  as  a 
poetess.  At  other  times  I  would  picture  myself  an  actress  with 
large  audiences  before  me. 

When  thirteen  years  old  I  had  an  idea  that  I  could  write  a 
book.  I  wrote  two  notebooks  full  of  a  story  entitled  "  The 
Peacemakers."  I  brought  my  very  best  friends  into  a  room 
(after  the  completion  of  the  book)  and  told  them  that  they  had 
an  authoress  for  a  friend.  I  read  them  the  story,  but  somehow 
or  other  did  not  feel  great  after  I  read  it  to  them,  and  ever 

['32] 


THE  PERIOD  OF  DAYDREAMS 

after  I  lost  ambition  in  that  direction  and  no  longer  dreamed 
of  being  an  authoress.  I  used  to  walk  around  and  think  of  how 
I  might  have  done  things  differently.  My  greatest  dream  was 
of  how  I  could  get  rich  and  help  the  poor.  The  plans  I  laid 
were  manifold. 

Even  to  this  day  I  dream.  In  fact,  my  mind  wanders  to 
such  an  extent  that  often  when  mother  asks  me  for  something 
I  have  only  a  vague  idea  of  what  she  asked  and  thus  bring  her 
something  else. 

These  dreams  are  advantageous  to  the  extent  that  they  often 
spur  one  on  to  realize  them.  I  am  not  an  actress,  for  I  have 
higher  ambitions ;  however,  I  still  enjoy  being  in  amateur  plays. 
I  am  not  a  poetess,  for  I  have  never  devoted  much  time  to 
writing  poetry  for  publication ;  however,  I  have  written  much 
verse  for  my  own  amusement,  some  sorority  poems  and  songs, 
papers,  and  many  letters  in  verse.  I  am  not  a  great  philan- 
thropist yet,  but  I  hope  to  be  some  day.  Thus  I  feel  that  my 
dreams  were  not  all  futile. 

There  is  a  possibility  of  becoming  erratic,  absent-minded,  and 
sentimental  if  one  dreams  too  much.  For  instance,  if  I  had 
dreamed  too  much  of  what  I  am  about  to  relate  I  don't  sup- 
pose it  would  have  produced  the  best  effect.  I  used  to  dream 
of  my  home,  and  little  ones  sitting  around  after  supper,  and  of 
how  I  would  play  with  them  and  then  send  them  off  to  bed, 
and  discuss  matters  for  the  rest  of  the  evening  with  my  "  dear 
husband." 

EXERCISES 

The  practical  significance  of  the  imaginative  tendencies  may  per- 
haps best  be  brought  out  by  a  debate  as  to  the  relative  prominence 
of  good  or  bad  results  attending  extreme  activity  of  the  imagination, 
and  a  discussion  of  the  best  means  of  diminishing,  increasing,  or 
directing  imaginative  activity  through  work,  play,  reading,  dramatics, 
or  achievements  such  as  planned  by  directors  of  corn  clubs,  tomato 
clubs,  etc.,  and  by  the  regulations  and  activities  of  the  Boy  Scouts 
and  Camp  Fire  Girls. 

[133] 


CHAPTER  XIV 

EVILS  AND  DANGERS  OF  THE  IMAGINATION 
IN  CHILDREN 

Playful  and  pleasurable  imagination.  All  good  things 
have  possibilities  of  evil  and  danger.  Misery  as  well  as 
pleasure  may  be  produced  by  the  imagination.  It  may 
also  be  futile  or  destructive  of  mental  power  or  detri- 
mental to  the  moral  nature. 

In  physical  and  mental  health  imagination  contributes 
to  the  fullness  of  life  and  is  more  concerned  with  pleasur- 
able experiences  and  constructive  effort  than  with  dis- 
agreeable images  and  vain  imaginings.  The  same  instinct 
which  impels  one  to  diminish  or  avoid  pain  causes  one 
to  cherish  pleasurable  rather  than  painful  images. 

This  is  especially  true  of  the  playful  use  of  the  imag- 
ination, examples  of  which  have  already  been  given  in 
preceding  chapters.  This  unrestrained  play  of  the  imag- 
ination may,  of  course,  have  unfortunate  results  when  it 
is  carried  to  excess.  Not  only  may  it  take  the  place  of 
useful,  well-directed  effort,  which  would  in  some  cases 
be  more  valuable,  but  it  may  result  in  a  state  of  mind 
which  makes  it  impossible  to  direct  the  imagination  to 
useful  ends  or  to  prevent  imaginative  activity  from  being 
so  confused  with  realities  that  discernment  of  truth  is 
difficult  or  impossible. 

This  playful  activity  may  take  peculiar  forms  and  is 
associated  with  the  desire  to  seek  a  variety  of  emotional 

[134] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

life  by  having  in  a  more  or  less  intense  form  many  kinds 
of  experiences,  painful  as  well  as  pleasurable.  This  tend- 
ency makes  tragedy  as  well  as  comedy  interesting  and 
even  enjoyable.  Many  things  may  more  safely  be  experi- 
enced in  imagination  than  in  reality,  but  there  are  dan- 
gers. Imagination  begun  in  a  semiplayful  way  may  become 
serious,  as  when  a  little  girl  who  had  heard  of  the  sick- 
ness of  an  aunt  began  repeating  in  a  rhythmic  way  to 
her  dolly  as  she  rocked,  "Auntie  is  sick  and  maybe  she 
will  die,"  in  a  sadder  and  sadder  tone  until  she  burst 
into  tears  and  could  not  easily  be  pacified. 

The  sentimentalist  is  one  who  dwells  in  the  world  of 

-- 

imaginative  emotion  without  being  stimulated  to  effective 
action  in  dealing  with  realities.  "-Some  representation  of 
emotional  states  in  childhood,  not  too  intense  or  pro- 
longed, may  be  advantageous  rather  than  harmful,  but 
there  is  always  the  danger  that  it  may  be  carried  too  far 
and  become  a  permanent  condition,  instead  of  a  passing 
phase  of  development  in  which  this  flowering  of  the  emo- 
tional life  is  followed  by  the  fruits  of  solid  character 
and  well-directed  effort. 

_Jivils  are  almost  sure  to  result  from  imaginative  activity 
when  the  self  is  made  too  prominent,  especially  in  con- 
nection with  representations  of  the  pathetic  with  oneself 
as  the  subject.  Sometimes  children  revel  in  imaginative 
representations  of  their  own  suffering  and  death.  This 
more  frequently  occurs  after  punishment  or  reproof.  Such 
direction  of  imagination  may  arouse  a  good  deal  of  self- 
pity  and  become  injurious,  as  in  the  following : 

Between  the  years  of  eleven  and  twelve  I  grew  rather  morbid. 
My  thoughts  dwelt  a  great  deal  on  death.  Everyone  was  mis- 
treating me,  and  death  would  be  a  relief.  Often  I  would  have 

[135] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

an  entire  death  scene.  I  imagined  myself  dying,  then  lying  in 
the  coffin,  but  before  I  could  imagine  myself  in  the  cold  grave, 
tears  of  self-pity  would  be  streaming,  and  I  would  run  to  mother, 
saying,  "I  don't  want  to  die." 

Evil  results  may  also  follow  the  half-playful  exploration 
by  the  imagination  of  the  possible  human  emotions,  when 
any  one  kind  of  mental  picturing  is  given  too  much 
prominence  and  reality  by  association  with  some  funda- 
mental instinct.  In  childhood  the  danger  of  injury 
through  fear  is  much  greater  for  the  imaginative  child 
than  for  others.  The  pleasant  thrill  of  fear  produced  by 
playful  use  of  the  imagination  may  be  gradually  trans- 
formed into  a  paralyzing  horror  or  morbid  picturing  of 
dangers  that  are  not  imminent  and  that  would  have  little 
influence  upon  a  less  imaginative  child.  One  girl  often 
suffered  at  night  from  fear  of  bears,  though  she  greatly 
enjoyed  in  the  daytime  a  modified  game  of  hide  and  seek 
in  which  the  bear  was  "It,"  and  great  ingenuity  was  exer- 
cised in  escaping  him.  On  the  other  hand,  playful  imag- 
ination may  counteract  fear,  as  in  the  case  of  a  little  girl 
who  employed  her  playful  imagination  in  making  up 
stories  to  such  an  extent  that  she  could  go  on  errands 
in  the  dark  without  fear. 

In  adolescence  the  sex  instinct  is  a  serious  source  of 
danger  to  the  imaginative  child  if  his  imagination  gets 
started  along  wrong  lines.  On  the  other  hand,  the  same 
instinct  may  be  a  powerful  stimulus  to  the  founding  of 
moral  and  religious  ideals,  to  artistic  and  intellectual 
productions,  and  to  ambition  in  various  forms. 

Serious  or  purposeftd  imagination.    When  engaging  in 

any  new  form  of  motor  process,  such  as  gymnastic  move- 

,  ments  or  in  manual  work,  the  motions  are  often  rehearsed 

[136] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

in  imagination  before  they  are  made.  In  solving  puzzles 
or  working  out  plans  or  problems  the  imagination  is  often 
occupied  with  preliminary  representations  of  what  the 
process  is  to  be.  These  preliminary  sketches  of  proce- 
dure are  made  quickly  and  with  pleasure  when  they  seem 
to  promise  a  satisfactory  performance  or  solution.  If, 
however,  no  adequate  representation  of  means  and  results 
can  be  made,  there  is  a  baffled  feeling  which  is  decidedly 
disagreeable.  It  may  even  become  horrible  if  one  is  im- 
pressed with  the  seriousness  of  a  situation,  as  when  danger 
seems  imminent  enough  to  demand  that  something  be  done 
at  once.  The  most  universal  excitants  of  fear  are  sudden 
strong  stimuli  and  things  that  are  strange,  unusual,  or 
mysterious.  The  first  demands  instant  action,  but  favors 
wild  imaging  rather  than  the  orderly  working  out  of  a 
suitable  plan  ;  the  second  projects  one  into  a  little-known 
field,  where  dangers  continue  to  threaten,  but  no  way  out 
is  seen.  Just  as  a  pursued  animal  rushes  hither  and 
thither,  so  the  mind  pictures  one  terror  after  another  and 
finds  no  means  of  gaining  freedom.  Indefiniteness  is 
stimulating  to  the  imagination,  and  when  mystery  arouses 
fear  there  is  an  almost  irresistible  tendency  to  go  on  pic- 
turing the  desperate  situation  from  which  there  is  no 
apparent  escape. 

This  is  especially  true  when  a  child  begins  to  think  of 
something  disturbing  when  alone  in  the  dark.  One  phan- 
tom danger  after  another  appears,  with  no  way  of  meet- 
ing it  suggested  and  with  no  real  objects  visible  to  divert 
the  attention.  This  may  continue  until  a  scream  of  terror 
brings  someone,  and  a  light  shows  what  is  really  present 
in  the  room.  So  vivid,  however,  have  these  mental  crea- 
tions become  that  they  are  scarcely  dispelled  by  the  sight 

[137] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

of  familiar  objects  and  the  sound  of  reassuring  words. 
In  other  instances  there  are  no  definite  images  of  a  par- 
ticular form  of  danger,  but  a  continued  feeling  of  insecurity 
which  the  individual  has  no  means  of  combating.    For 
example,  a  child  of  four  who  had  associated  Germany 
with  the  terrors  of  war,  when  there  was  talk  of  a  possible 
war  with  that  country,  wanted  to  sleep  with  her  mother 
lest  Germany  come  and  get  her  in  the  night. 
>-,       The  first  time  that  a  certain  kind  of  fear  is  felt,  it  is 
often  possible  to  give  relief  by  showing  that  there  is  no 
real  danger.    In  nearly  all  instances,  however,  in  which 
fear  has  been  intense  or  has  persisted  for  some  time  it 
is  not  usually  possible  to  relieve  the  mental  tension  by 
showing  that  there  is  nothing  to  be  afraid  of.    Even 
<  though  the  reason  is  convinced,  the  imagination  will  con- 
|  tinue  to  produce  disturbing  images  and  the  muscles  to 
y  give  the  fear  reactions  whenever  the  circumstance  recurs. 
^-~It  is  usually  much  more  effective  to  suggest  a  way  of 
1  meeting  the  danger  than  to  continue  to  dwell  on  the  fact 
that  there  is  no  occasion  for  fear.    The  assurance  that  an 
older  person  will  protect  a  child  is  often  sufficient.    In 
one  case  a  child  who  was  Afraid  to  go  on  an  errand  in 
the  dark  was  told  to  think  of  her  father  as  being  with 
her  as  she  walked  along,  and  by  keeping  his  image  in 
mind  she  went  without  being  frightened.    This  idea  of  a 
companion  as  a  means  of  safety  may  be  effective,  even 
when  the  companion  is  younger  and  more  helpless  than 
oneself.    For  example,  a  girl  of  ten  was  not  afraid  to  go 
into  a  dark  room  if  a  two-year-old  brother  went  with  her. 
Sometimes  terror  is  transformed  into  pleasure  by  an 
imaginary  solution  of  the  difficulty,  as  when  a  boy  pic- 
tures the  woods  as  filled  with  bears,  lions,  Indians,  etc., 

[138] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

which  he  is  able  to  slay  by  pointing  his  stick  gun  at 
them.  Many  superstitions  represent  imaginative  means  of 
meeting  or  avoiding  dangers  which  have  come  to  be 
accepted  as  reliable.  If  believed  in,  these  are  just  as 
effective  in  quieting  unpleasant  activity  of  the  imagination 
as  are  scientifically  formulated  rules  of  safety. 

Indeed,  scientific  directions  for  avoiding  danger  which 
are  not  surely  effective  may  prove  of  little  or  no  value  in 
allaying  fear.  For  example,  a  teacher  who  explained  some 
of  the  ways  of  decreasing  the  probability  of  being  struck 
by  lightning  succeeded  only  in  exciting  a  terror  of  it  that 
had  never  before  been  experienced.  One  girl  of  ten  suf- 
fered for  more  than  a  year  from  such  fears,  although  tak- 
ing the  precautions  suggested  by  keeping  her  head  at 
night  as  far  as  possible  from  the  head  of  the  bed,  which 
was  of  iron.  She  had  in  some  way  got  the  idea  that 
lightning  entered  the  ears,  so  it  did  not  matter  that  her 
feet  were  near  the  iron  footboard.  The  precautions  were, 
however,  of  small  service  in  allaying  her  fears,  because 
the  remedy  was  not  believed  to  be  infallible. 

There  are  many  instances  showing  that  "  a  little  knowl^ 
^gdge  is  a  dangerous  thing7  as  tar  as  peace  of  mind  is 
concerned.  Acquaintance  with  the  dangers  due  to  germs 
produces  in  some  people  more  imaginative  terror  of  disease 
than  is  allayed  by  many  well-founded  directions  as  to  how 
to  avoid  infection.  The  danger  seems  imminent,  and  the 
safeguards  not  sure ;  hence  many  persons  are  in  deadly 
terror  of  germs  though  continually  taking  precautions 
against  them. 

Some  minds  are  filled  with  forebodings,  and  trivial 
incidents,  as  in  the  following  case,  may  be  woefully  ex- 
aggerated or  distorted. 

[?39] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

Once  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  when  in  poor  health,  I  kissed  my 
mother  good  night;  she  allowed  me  to  kiss  her,  but  did  not 
return  the  kiss.  I  went  upstairs  and  thought  about  it.  The 
more  I  thought  of  it  the  worse  pranks  my  imagination  played 
on  me.  I  saw  myself  a  good-for-nothing,  unable  to  accomplish 
a  single  thing  well.  I  saw  myself  in  later  life  in  ragged  clothes, 
with  wrinkled  face,  worth  nothing  to  myself  or  the  world.  When 
father  and  mother  came  upstairs  a  little  after  midnight  they 
found  me  crying,  and  for  a  couple  of  hours  they  stayed  with  me, 
trying  to  comfort  me. 

The  accumulating  results  of  imaginative  terrors  are  well 
illustrated  by  the  following  : 

When  I  was  a  child  about  five  years  of  age  I  was  sent  to 
bed  unusually  early  one  evening,  and  because  it  was  not  my 
regular  bedtime  I  was  not  sleepy.  I  lay  several  hours  with  eyes 
wide  open.  At  first  there  was  no  thought  of  fear,  then,  slowly, 
strange,  fearful  objects  took  shape  in  the  room.  Too  frightened 
to  call  I  lay  there  in  nervous  terror  till  late  at  night  and  was 
still  awake  when  my  older  sister  came  into  the  room.  The  next 
night  I  was  sent  to  bed  at  the  regular  hour,  but  could  not  sleep 
and  again  became  frightened.  This  continued  for  several  nights, 
until  finally  I  refused  to  go  to  bed  alone  unless  some  one  of  the 
family  promised  to  sleep  with  me.  No  one  could  understand  it, 
because  I  had  never  been  afraid  and  had  never  been  willfully 
frightened  by  anyone.  I  cannot  remember  that  I  was  afraid  of 
any  particular  thing,  such  as  "bears"  or  "bogy  men";  indeed, 
it  was  not  long  till  there  was  no  actual  physical  fear,  yet  I  had 
a  horror  of  being  in  the  room  alone  or  sleeping  with  anyone 
who  was  not  of  our  own  family.  During  the  day  I  would 
promise  myself  and  my  mother  I  would  be  brave,  but  when 
evening  came  would  become  almost  ill  with  nervous  dread,  and 
often  could  not  eat  the  evening  meal.  I  cannot  remember  ex- 
actly how  the  trouble  was  overcome.  However,  the  memory  of 
it  is  very  vivid,  for  my  childish  suffering  was  intense. 

[140] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

A  year  or  so  later  I  went  through  much  the  same  thing,  be- 
ginning to  imagine  things  at  night,  because  I  did  not  have  the 
courage  to  tell  my  mother  of  something  wrong  I  had  done,  and 
it  did  not  leave  me  until  I  finally  told  her. 

When  I  was  about  eleven  my  mother  was  very  ill,  and  I 
overheard  someone  saying  she  might  not  live.  That  chance 
remark  set  my  imagination  to  working  overtime  again.  I  be- 
came nervous  and  frightened,  could  not  sleep  that  night,  and 
for  a  long  time,  when  evening  came  on,  I  would  often  be  almost 
ill  with  dread  of  a  something  I  could  not  explain.  I  could  hardly 
be  persuaded  to  be  out  of  sight  of  my  mother,  after  coming 
home  from  school. 

The  last  trouble  I  had  with  this  peculiar  fear  and  nervous- 
ness was  at  about  the  age  of  twelve,  when  I  was  away  from 
home  and  homesick.  During  the  day  I  was  happy,  but  at  night 
the  old  trouble  came  back ;  and  even  now,  if  anything  disturbs 
me,  I  am  inclined  to  become  panicky  at  night. 

Imagination  in  relation  to  lying.  In  early  childhood 
the  imaginative  life  rivals  the  real,  in  its  vividness  and 
interest,  and  the  child  often  feels  no  need  to  distinguish 
between  the  two.  An  imaginative  child  often  relates  the 
events  of  his  mental  life  as  if  they  were  real.  This  is  in 
no  way  abnormal  or  objectionable  in  its  beginning,  but  if 
the  desirability  of  distinguishing  between  the  two  kinds 
of  events  is  not  brought  home  to  the  child,  and  he  con- 
tinues to  confuse  and  substitute  one  for  the  other,  the 
conditions  become  abnormal  in  that  the  power  of  the 
mind  to  know  the  truth,  so  as  to  deal  successfully  with 
realities,  is  lessened.  This  danger  is  not  so  great  when 
the  imagination  is  used  playfully  and  for  the  immediate 
pleasure  of  the  moment.  If  such  imagination  is  associated 
with  action,  the  power  to  discern  the  truth  is  strengthened 
'rather  than  weakened.  The  child  who  sometimes  deals 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

with  real  objects  and  persons  and  sometimes  with  imagi- 
nary can  scarcely  avoid  being  impressed  with  the  difference 
between  them.  The  imaginary  are  under  his  control,  as 
the  real  are  not,  and  this  alone  impresses  him  with  the 
difference  between  the  two  and  makes  it  almost  certain 
that  he  will  not  be  easily  deluded,  in  more  serious  situa- 
tions, into  believing  what  he  wants  to  believe  rather  than 
facing  facts  as  they  are. 

•>  The  most  serious  danger  from  accepting  as  true  only 
what  is  pleasing  is  in  the  case  of  children  who  have  not 
engaged  in  imaginative  play  at  all  or,  having  done  so, 
have  not  had  much  to  do  with  real  things  and  persons. 
They  are  much  more  likely  to  accept  as  true  the  repre- 
sentations that  please  them. 

The  strength  of  this  tendency  is  shown  not  only  in 
playful  imaging  but  als.o  in  all  testimony  of  children  and 
'  adults  regarding  exciting  events  in  which  they  have  had 
a  part,  especially  if  it  be  a  quarrel.    Few  persons  can  en- 
i  tirely  resist  this  tendency.    Each  presents  the  facts  that 
jare  most  favorable  to  himself,  with  some  additions,  and 
/deceives  himself  as  well  as  others  as  to  the  exact  circum- 
stances involved.    Vivid  images  as  to  what  might  have 
been  done  may  also  deceive  one  into  believing  that  what 
was  imaged  really  occurred. 

If  there  is  a  definite  reason  for  wishing  to  deceive, 
i  the  telling  of  what  has  been  imaged  as  if  it  were  real 
j  may  tend  to  confirm  the  individual  in  his  half  belief  that 
/  his  images  do  represent  realities.    The  selfish  and  self- 
righteous  individual  is  thus  notoriously  inclined  not  only 
to  deceive  others  but  also  to  become  self -deceived. 

In  the  case  of  able  and  imaginative  persons  the  selfish 
lie  may,  on  the  other  hand,  be  clearly  distinguished  as 

[142] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

false,  and  much  dramatic  and  imaginative  ability  may  be 
shown  in  deceiving  others,  but  with  full  consciousness 
that  the  truth  is  otherwise.  Such  lying,  however  objec- 
tionable morally,  is  not  psychologically  abnormal.  On  the 
contrary,  it  quickens  the  intelligence  to  invent  something 
that  will  seem  plausible  and  the  falsity  of  which  will  not 
be  easily  detected.  It  also  involves  care  in  remembering 
what  has  been  previously  told,  so  as  to  avoid  contradiction 
and  discovery.  If  such  an  individual  keeps  his  fabrica- 
tions within  bounds  and  remembers  them  so  as  to  keep 
them  consistent,  he  may  succeed  for  a  long  time  in  de- 
ceiving others  to  his  own  advantage  without  in  any  way 
weakening  his  mental  powers.  If,  however,  he  so  delights 
in  his  clever  inventions  that  he  lies  when  the  truth  would 
better  serve  his  purposes,  and  cannot  remember  what  he 
has  previously  told,  his  mental  powers  are  likely  to  be 
somewhat  decreased,  and  thus  his  imagination  becomes 
abnormal,  since  it  acts  in  opposition  to  his  self-interest 
and  to  the  efficiency  of  his  intellectual  processes. 

Children  frequently  become  adepts  in  manufacturing 
stories  explaining  why  they  have  not  done  what  was  expected 
of  them.  If  they  can  thus  retain  favor,  this  method  of 
meeting  situations  by  excuses  and  lies,  instead  of  by  honest 
effort  in  doing  the  thing  required,  is  continued  and  im- 
proved upon.  Sooner  or  later,  however,  they  fail  to  con- 
vince and  are  driven  to  excessive  and  often  abnormal  lying. 

Lying  is  the  almost  universal  means  of  protection  and 
safety  resorted  to  by  those  who  are  weak  and  helpless 
and  by  those  whp  by  negligence,  dishonesty,  or  other 
wrongdoing  have  got  themselves  into  difficulties.  Lying, 
to  the  imaginative  individual,  is  the  easiest  way  of  tem- 
porarily meeting  the  situation.  Individuals  out  of  harmony 

[143] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

with  their  environment  and  in  a  state  of  mental  conflict 
may  lie  when  confronted  by  each  new  situation,  just  as 
spontaneously  and  with  as  little  discrimination  as  one 
person  jumps  or  screams  when  frightened,  or  another, 
when  angered,  flies  into  a  tantrum  or  scolds  vociferously. 
The  fabrications  may  do  no  more  good  than  the  emotional 
expressions.  They  are  merely  an  active  but  ineffective 
response  to  a  disturbing  situation.  Such  an  individual 
often  lies  glibly  and  voluminously,  although  he  knows 
that  he  will  be  detected  and  his  interests  will  be  harmed 
rather  than  helped  by  his  stories. 

>  In  some  individuals  the  tendency  to  this  abnormal  use 
of  the  imagination  is  greatly  increased  by  desire  for  notice 
and  notoriety.  This  is  often  shown  by  persons  who  make 
false  charges  of  assault  against  prominent  persons,  or  re- 
port that  they  have  witnessed  a  murder,  or,  in  some  cases, 
accuse  themselves  of  murder  or  other  crimes.  In  this  way 
they  secure  the  public  notice  that  more  efficient  individuals 
get  through  notable  achievements.  When  such  a  course  is 
continued,  though  it  is  clear  that  it  is  against  self-interest, 
the  lying  is  abnormal,  yet  is  often  practiced  by  persons 
who  do  not  seem  to  be  really  insane  or  feeble-minded. 

Mental  conflict  as  cause  of  wrongdoing.  Sometimes 
disturbing  questions  concerning  instinctive  tendencies  are 
the  occasion  of  abnormal  activity  of  the  imagination  ;  as 
when  a  girl  relates  a  long  story  of  her  immoralities, 
although  she  has  really  been  strictly  chaste  in  her  con- 
duct. In  this  case  false  imagings  take  the  place  of  wrong 
actions  without  any  real  solution  of  life's  problems  being 
found. 

In  other  cases  mental  conflict  caused  by  conscious- 
ness of  wrongdoing  associated  with  instinctive  tendencies, 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

of  oneself  or  others,  gives  rise  to  wrong  actions  of  an 
entirely  different  type,  in  which  images  play  a  consider- 
able part.  Dr.  Healey  reports  a  case  of  this  kind  that 
would  usually  be  regarded  as  one  of  typical  kleptomania. 
A  girl,  who  after  careful  observation  and  testing  was 
found  to  be  intelligent  and  normal  in  other  respects,  stole 
repeatedly,  often  things  that  were  of  no  use  to  her.  She 
could  give  no  reason  why  she  did  so.  Inquiry,  however, 
revealed  the  fact  that  the  impulse  to  steal  was  associated 
with  certain  disturbing  thoughts  or  images.  It  was  found 
that  when  eight  or  nine  years  old,  during  a  summer  vaca- 
tion, she  had  formed  the  acquaintance  of  an  older  girl  who 
stole  and  who  also  talked  of  her  relations  with  boys.  The 
little  girl  was  stirred  by  these  partially  understood  ideas 
of  wrongdoing.  She  was  a  modest  child  and  showed  no 
tendency  whatever  to  sex  immorality,  which  she  thought 
must  be  very  bad,  but  whenever  she  thought  of  the  older 
girl  and  what  she  did  and  said,  she  had  the  impulse  to 
the  less  serious  form  of  wrongdoing,  that  of  stealing. 
When  the  mysteries  of  sex  were  explained  to  her  the 
disturbing  thoughts  ceased,  and  she  no  longer  had  the 
previously  unaccountable  impulse  to  steal. 

Dr.  Healey  gives  several  other  instances  of  stealing 
and  irregularity  of  conduct  growing  out  of  mental  con- 
flicts connected  with  sex.  A  boy  of  nine  was  told  of  sex 
matters  by  companions,  thus  producing  a  mental  conflict 
that  resulted  in  stealing.  In  the  case  of  an  older  boy 
the  sight  of  a  young  woman  who  had  made  love  to  him 
caused  him  to  become  restless  and  dissatisfied.  Presently 
he  left  his  delivery  team  and  went  off  and  spent  thirty- 
five  dollars  of  his  employers'  money.  He  worked  three 
months  to  pay  it  back.  He  was  not  sexually  immoral, 

[145] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

but  frequently  stole  when  certain  images  came  to  his 
mind.  This  may  be  contrasted  with  the  many  instances 
when  the  thought  of  a  lover  stimulates  to  noble  action 
and  high  achievement. 

Another  boy  of  ten  stole  and  told  lies  as  a  result  of 
mental  conflict  produced  by  images  of  bad  words  he  had 
heard.  Any  mental  conflict,  especially  that  between  duty 
and  desire,  if  not  harmonized  may  thus  produce  abnormal 
T  activity  of  the  imagination. 

It  seems  from  these  and  other  cases  that  imaginative 
activity  associated  with  an  instinctive  impulse  may  remain 
a  disturbing  mental  influence  as  long  as  no  satisfactory 
way  of  acting  or  thinking  in  response  to  this  impulse  is 
found.  So  long  as  such  a  mental  conflict  continues  there 
are  likely  to  be  imagery  and  action  that  are  contrary  to 
self-interest,  or,  in  other  words,  the  condition  is  abnormal. 

How  to  guard  against  the  dangers  of  imagination.  It 
is  not  to  be  inferred  that  all  mental  conflicts  are  abnormal. 
On  the  contrary,  invention,  discovery,  philosophical  theo- 
ries, and  religious  beliefs  are  the  healthy  outcome  of  men- 
tal conflicts.  The  abnormal  mental  conflict  is  that  which 
leads  to  hysterical  or  blind  struggling,  which  only  in- 
creases the  disturbance  or  diverts  the  imagination  into 
\  unnatural  channels. 

There  are  two  natural  correctives  of  abnormal  imagina- 
*  tive  activities  :  one  js_  a  great  deal  of  experience  in  deal- 
ing with  things,  whereby  their  real  nature  and  the  limits 
of  one's  power  may.  be  discovered ;  and  the  other  is 
association  with  people  who  are  continually  demonstrating 
by  actions,  and  occasionally  by  words,  how  situations  may 
be  met  and  problems  solved.  The  child  who  has  plenty  of 
opportunity  for  play  and  work  and  for  observing,  imitating, 

[146] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

and  questioning  people  is  safeguarded  against  most  of 
the  dangers  of  excessive  and  perverted  imagination,  at 
least  so  far  as  his  immediate  surroundings  are  concerned. 

Injurious  activity  of  the  imagination  comes  from  un- 
usual and  startling  experiences  or  from  objects,  forces, 
or  events  that  have  not  come  within  the  child's  previous 
experience  and  of  which  he  can  get  no  satisfactory 
explanation  by  observation  and  questions. 

Some  of  the  special  excitants  of  the  imagination  which 
are  not  easily  normalized  by  experience  or  observation  are 
concerned  with  death,  birth,  and  religion.  The  explana- 
tion given  children  by  older  people  sometimes,  instead  of 
solving  the  mystery  and  suggesting  a  rational  course  of 
action,  only  increases  it  and  stimulates  the  imagination 
to  useless  and  unsatisfying  activity. 

If  a  child  without  preliminary  experience  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  death  of  plants,  animals,  and  persons  is  sud- 
denly confronted  by  a  complete  change  of  the  family  life 
through  the  death  of  one  of  its  members,  the  shock  is 
often  profound.  The  child  frequently  suffers  terribly  and 
sometimes  for  years  is  oppressed  by  the  fear  of  his  own 
death  or  of  that  of  some  other  member  of  the  family. 
The  following  is  a  good  illustration : 

One  instance  of  imagination  has  worked  to  my  detriment 
even  to  this  day.  When  I  was  ten  years  old  I  lost  my  brother 
and,  having  seen  but  little  sickness  and  no  death,  it  left  me  with 
such  a  horror  that  I  was  haunted  by  thoughts  of  it  day  and 
night.  Shortly  after  this  a  woman  living  near  us,  who,  I  now 
know,  was  not  quite  sane,  took  a  very  great  dislike  to  me  and 
did  all  in  her  power  to  make  me  unhappy.  Knowing  my  great 
fear  of  sickness  and  death,  she  one  day  told  me  that  because 
I  was  such  a  naughty  little  girl  the  Lord  was  going  to  take  my 

[147] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

mother  away  from  me,  as  He  had  my  brother,  and  that  she 
was  going  to  be  ill  a  long  time  first.  When  she  told  me  this, 
it  seemed  as  though  I  could  not  bear  it.  I  would  not  be  away 
from  my  mother  one  instant.  I  imagined  she  was  getting 
thinner  and  paler  every  day.  I  became  morose  and  blue  and 
no  one  could  do  anything  with  me.  I  would  dream  of  it  by 
night  and  wake  up  screaming  with  horror.  I  had  to  go  to 
school,  but  many  times  the  teacher  would  have  to  send  me 
home  because  of  my  crying.  Always  I  saw  my  mother  sick  and 
dying.  It  took  me  many  months  to  become  convinced  of  my 
foolishness,  and  the  nerve  strain  which  I  suffered  has  its  effect 
on  me  even  to-day. 

The  death  of  a  playmate  is  often  equally  disturbing. 
If  the  older  people  are  disinclined  to  talk  about  the  de- 
ceased or  about  death,  the  child  is  further  impressed  and 
disturbed  by  his  own  attempts  to  solve  the  mystery.  If, 
on  the  other  hand,  adult  companions  of  the  child  speak 
freely  of  the  one  who  has  died,  just  as  of  absent  persons, 
and  death  is  explained  as  being  similar  to  sleep,  the 
strangeness  of  death  is  minimized  and  thus  loses  its 
horror.  If  the  idea  of  permanent  sleep  in  the  cold 
ground  is  disturbing  to  the  child  the  assurance  that  there 
is  no  feeling  diminishes  the  terror,  and  the  religious  doc- 
trine of  a  future  resurrection  is  often  comforting.  The 
statement  that  the  body  only  is  in  the  ground  and  the 
spirit  in  heaven  is  often  more  confusing  than  satisfying. 
One  little  girl  thought  of  dead  people  as  being  still  and 
having  their  eyes  closed,  and  could  not  understand  how 
they  could  play  and  be  happy  in  that  condition  as  she 
had  been  told  they  were. 

Stories  of  persons  buried  alive  have  caused  many 
people  lifelong  misery,  leading  sometimes  to  a  decidedly 

[148] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

morbid  condition  of  mind.  In  the  case  of  one  girl  of  ten 
the  imagery  was  so  vivid  that  she  could  almost  feel  herself 
suffocating  and  would  put  out  her  hands  to  see  if  she 
could  feel  the  coffin  sides.  She  would  then  begin  to  cry 
and  call  for  her  mother. 

The  phenomena  associated  with  birth  are  not  in  their 
nature  depressing  and  terrifying  as  are  those  of  death, 
yet  they  may  become  equally  strong  stimuli  to  useless  and 
injurious  activity  of  the  imagination.  Adults  have  con- 
spired to  prevent  children  from  having  any  true  knowledge 
of  the  phenomena  and  have  misled  and  mystified  them. 
Such  instances  as  the  following  are  really  pathetic  though 
usually  regarded  as  amusing.  A  little  girl  who  much  de- 
sired a  baby  brother,  and  had  heard  some  remark  leading 
her  to  think  that  people  had  to  get  babies  by  going  fish- 
ing for  them,  went  day  after  day  to  a  small  stream  and 
fished  for  a  baby  until  she  finally  became  discouraged. 
When  children  who  have  been  kept  from  knowing  the 
truth  and  have  been  intentionally  deceived  hear  a  vulgar 
distortion  of  the  facts  from  some  companion,  they  are 
shocked,  and  the  knowledge  that  such  talk  is  condemned 
by  elders  increases  the  child's  interest  in  such  subjects 
and  makes  them  more  fascinating,  at  the  same  time  giving 
evil  associations  to  many  things  that  are  not  naturally  con- 
nected with  wrongdoing.  To  children  whose  sex  instincts 
have  not  awakened,  the  mere  fact  that  there  are  mysteries 
regarded  as  evil  by  adults  is  sufficient  to  stimulate  the 
imagination  along  those  lines,  to  the  detriment  of  future 
morals,  and  to  produce  in  some  instances  abnormal  mental 
conflicts. 

After  the  sex  instinct  develops,  the  mind  which  might  YV 
have  been  filled  with  beautiful  images,  as  the  bird's  throat '  / 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

with  song  at  the  mating  season,  is  much  more  likely  to 
be  occupied  with  the  coarse  and  debasing  images  asso- 
ciated with  sex  that  were  acquired  earlier.  When  carried 
to  excess  this  not  only  results  in  immorality  but  directs  the 
mind  from  more  healthful  activity  and  not  infrequently 
results  in  mental  and  physical  deterioration.  In  other 
cases  there  is  a  conflict  between  the  higher  and  the  lower 
ideals  of  conduct  which  is  more  or  less  abnormal.  Com- 
paratively few  find  a  way  of  harmonizing  desires,  but 
instead  try  to  suppress  one  by  the  other. 

Religious  teaching  may  be  a  means  of  stimulating  the 
imagination  in  such  a  way  as  to  excite  abnormal  terrors 
or  so  as  to  solve  difficulties  and  give  peace  and  harmony. 
The  following  is  a  result  of  a  certain  kind  of  so-called 
religious  teaching : 

A  boy  of  four  had  been  told  that  he  must  not  listen 
to  the  devil  when  he  whispered  in  his  ear  telling  him  to 
do  naughty  things.  The  devil  immediately  became  very 
real  to  the  child,  and  when  reproved  for  doing  something 
naughty  he  would  whirl  around  and  stamp  on  the  floor, 
trying  to  crush  the  devil,  who,  however,  always  eluded 
him  and  remained  at  his  back. 

The  doctrine  of  future  punishment  has  been  a  source  of 
intense  mental  suffering  to  many  adults  and,  in  a  greater 
degree,  to  children.  Emphasis  upon  sin  and  the  presen- 
tation of  God  as  a  hater  and  punisher  of  sin,  whose  eyes 
see  all  things,  lead  to  all  sorts  of  images  of  punishments 
that  may  be  inflicted  at  any  time. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  idea  of  a  God  who  is  an  all- 
powerful  friend  and  will  protect  His  children  solves  most 
of  the  problems  of  life  so  far  as  the  imagination  is 
concerned. 

[150] 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

In  order  that  imagination  may  be  kept  in  healthful 
lines  the  child  must  feel  himself  in  harmony  with  the 
physical  world  in  which  he  lives,  with  the  people  with 
whom  he  associates,  and  with  whatever  higher  Power  he 
is  taught  exists.  When  he  destroys  objects  or  is  bruised 
or  hurt  by  them,  he  is  irritated  and  temporarily  out  of 
proper  relations  with  them.  The  feeling  of  harmony  may 
be  restored  by  showing  him  how  to  deal  with  them  so 
that  they  are  preserved  and  made  to  serve  his  purposes. 
In  a  similar  way  wrongdoing  sets  him  at  variance  with 
people  and  with  the  higher  Power.  If  he  can  be  taught 
and  induced  to  act  in  ways  that  bring  good  to  himself 
and  others,  harmony  is  restored.  The  more  the  experi- 
ences of  life  reveal  to  a  person  modes  of  action  that  are 
suitable  to  the  various  situations  met,  the  more  does  he 
feel  at  one  with  the  universe  in  which  he  lives  a.id  with 
all  that  it  contains.  This  is  the  essence  of  religion.  One 
who  is  in  this  attitude  of  mind  has  an  imagination  that 
works  along  constructive  lines  in  which  abnormal  activity 
is  impossible. 

All  modes  of  dealing  with  children  which  make  them 
continuously  conscious  of  failure  rather  than  of  success 
are  unfavorable  to  a  normal  development  of  the  imagina- 
tion. Continual  punishment  and  fear  of  evils  to  come 
also  produce  undesirable  developments.  Punishment  and 
fear  can  bring  about  good  results  only  when  they  quickly 
modifiy  conduct  and  reestablish  harmonious  relations. 

Literature  and  imaginative  activity.  Stories  of  all 
kinds  are  important  stimuli  to  the  imagination  and  may 
direct  it  in  ways  that  are  invigorating,  beautifying,  and 
ennobling  in  their  influence,  or  they  may  have  the  oppo- 
site effect.  The  latter  part  of  the  statement  holds  true 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

not  only  for  stories  admittedly  bad  but  for  some  that  are 
regarded  as  classics.  The  Erl-King  in  story  and  music  is 
one  of  the  worst  things  that  can  be  presented  to  a  sensi- 
tive child.  The  mystery  is  intense,  the  danger  ever  pur- 
suing, and  the  end  unexplained  death,  from  which  there 
was  no  escape  —  all  calculated  to  arouse  fear  and  stir  the 
imagination. 

The  story  of  Red  Riding  Hood,  if  it  makes  prominent 
the  fate  of  the  grandmother,  sometimes  causes  distress 
and  terror,  but  if  the  story  is  properly  told  this  feature 
of  it  is  scarcely  noticed.  To  do  away  with  death  entirely 
is  absurd,  hence  there  is  no  occasion  to  spoil  the  story  by 
having  the  wolf  become  good ;  on  the  contrary,  his  exe- 
cution is  the  proper  and  satisfactory  outcome  of  the  situa- 
tion. Stories  for  children  do  not  need  to  be  freed  from 
accounts  of  danger,  evil,  and  death.  The  essential  thing 
is  that  there  shall  be  a  logical  and  pleasing  ending  to  the 
drama.  Such  stories  as  the  "  Babes  in  the  Wood  "  and, 
in  a  less  degree,  "  The  Little  Match  Girl "  are  objec- 
tionable because  they  present  a  distressing  experience 
from  which  there  is  no  relief  other  than  the  death  of  the 
persons  in  whom  the  child  is  interested.  They  excite  only 
to  sentimentality  and  useless  imagining. 

Ghost  stories  are  generally  bad,  especially  when  no 
attempt  is  made  to  clear  up  the  mysteries.  The  only 
ghost  stories  that  are  ever  suitable  for  children  are  those 
in  which  the  foolishness  of  unreasoning  fear,  as  shown 
by  the  incidents  in  the  story,  is  made  so  evident  and  the 
explanation  so  clear  and  simple  that  the  whole  affair  is 
regarded  as  an  amusing  joke. 

Fairy  stories  may  be  good  or  bad  according  as  they  do 
or  do  not  furnish  satisfactory  explanations  of  the  situations 


EVILS  OF  IMAGINATION  IN  CHILDREN 

presented.  If  they  emphasize  mysterious  powers  of  evil 
and  do  not  show  how  they  may  be  overcome  or  avoided, 
the  child's  world,  which  has  enough  terrors  of  its  own,  has 
added  to  it  the  evils  and  mysteries  of  the  imaginary.  Even 
the  much-lauded  "  Pilgrim's  Progress  "  is  of  doubtful  value 
to  most  children  and  certainly  injurious  to  a  few.  The 
story  has  the  merit  of  presenting,  sooner  or  later,  a  satis- 
factory method  of  dealing  with  the  terrible  situations  por- 
trayed, but  the  fear-inspiring  power  of  the  giants  often 
makes  a  much  stronger  impression  upon  the  childish 
mind  than  do  the  means  of  escape.  As  a  fairy  story  it  is 
of  questionable  value  for  children,  while  the  deeper  truths 
it  was  intended  to  teach  are  little  understood  by  them. 
The  following  shows  the  effect  upon  one  child : 

I  fully  believed  in  giants.  To  me  they  were  immense  crea- 
tures much  larger  than  a  house.  I  never  thought  of  them  dur- 
ing the  day,  but  at  night  when  I  went  to  bed  I  was  in  constant 
fear  that  a  giant  would  come  along  and  smash  our  house  down 
with  his  huge  club.  I  was  greatly  relieved  when  I  finally  con- 
fided in  my  mother,  and  she  told  me  that  there  were  no  such 
things  as  giants.  The  idea  was  given  me  through  my  father's 
reading  to  me  out  of  "  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  especially  the  part 
where  Christian  was  captured  by  the  Giant  Despair  and  thrown 
into  Doubting  Castle. 

Some  of  the  writings  of  Poe  and  Hawthorne  are  not 
suitable  for  children  because  of  the  disturbing  and  un- 
solved mysteries  that  they  suggest 

Sorrow  and  suffering  should  not  be  excluded  from  chil- 
dren's stories ;  on  the  contrary,  literature  is  one  of  the 
best  ways  of  becoming  acquainted  with  them.  For  moral 
reasons,  however,  evil  should  not  be  represented  as  per- 
manently triumphant,  and  for  healthful  mental  life,  baffling 

[153] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

mysteries  should  not  be  featured  in  children's  stories. 
Troubles  may  be  portrayed,  but  there  should  also  be  re- 
vealed a  desirable  mode  of  meeting  them.  In  other  words, 
stories  are  a  means  of  teaching  the  truths  of  life  and 
should  not  present  to  children  evils,  sorrows,  and  mys- 
teries that  are  not  overcome,  alleviated,  or  solved.  They 
may  be  only  helplessly  grieved  or  puzzled,  while  adults  of 
vigorous  mentality,  by  similar  stories,  may  be  stimulated  to 
find  a  solution  of  the  deeper  problems  of  existence. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Give  illustrations  of  playful  imagination  becoming  painfully 
real  and  disagreeable. 

2.  Give  illustrations  of   serious   imaginative  activity  producing 
discomfort  increasing  to  terror,  or  of  relief  being  found. 

3.  Illustrate  how  lying  may  be  corrected  or  may  develop  and 
become  abnormal. 

4.  Give  illustrations  of  mental  conflicts  leading  to  disturbance 
of  the  imagination  and  to  wrong  action. 

5.  Show  how  imaginative  activity  associated  with  death,  birth, 
and  religion  may  be  directed  into  healthful  channels. 

6.  Discuss  the  suitability  of  various  stories  to  children  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  solutions  they  offer  to  the  situations  they  present. 


[154] 


PART  III 
SCHOOL  SUBJECTS  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 


CHAPTER  XV 

USE  AND  TRAINING  OF  IMAGINATION 
IN  SCHOOL 

Disciplining  the  imagination.  There  has  been  much 
less  said  in  educational  circles  about  training  the  imagina- 
tion than  about  training  the  memory  or  the  reasoning. 
In  truth,  tijere  probably  is  more  reason  for  discussing 
the  training  of  the  imagination  than  of  any  other  power, 
for  it  is  the  one  most  used  in  every  form  of  school 
work  during  the  period  of  common-school  education 
and  one  of  the  most  useful  all  through  life. 

Perhaps  one  reason  why  less  has  been  said  is  because 
teachers  have  felt  the  hopelessness  of  the  task.  Many  of 
them  have  found  the  imagination  of  children  so  active 
and  so  disturbing  to  their  carefully  laid  plans  of  teaching 
and  training  that  they  have  felt  that  they  had  all  they 
could  do  if  they  kept  it  in  check  while  the  formal  school- 
ing supposed  to  be  necessary  was  given.  On  the  other 
hand,  some  teachers  who  are  themselves  imaginative  have 
attempted,  often  with  slight  results,  to  get  children  to 
image  as  they  themselves  do.  Comparatively  few  have 
been  able  successfully  to  stimulate  and  direct  children's 
imagination  in  such  a  way  as  to  give  it  effective  training. 

The  effort  to  train  memory  and  reasoning  so  that  they 
will  function  effectively  in  all  lines  has  been  so  discourag- 
ing that  belief  in  general  or  formal  discipline  has  rapidly 

[157] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

disappeared.  There  is  reason  to  think  that  formal  disci- 
pline, even  if  there  should  be  some  value  in  it,  has  very 
little  application  in  the  training  of  the  imagination. 

The  most  general  characteristic  of  imagination  which 
should  be  developed  is  that  of  increasing  the  power  of 
voluntarily  making  the  imagined  seem  real  without  in  any 
way  confusing  it  with  what  has  been  or  is  being  experi- 
enced. This  and  other  less  general  characteristics  of  this 
useful  faculty  may  probably  be  best  developed  not  by 
special  exercises  with  that  end  in  view  but  by  employing 
the  imagination  in  a  variety  of  useful  ways  for  pleasure 
and  for  the  accomplishment  of  definite  tasks.  If  a  per- 
son's imagination  is  used  so  as  to  help  him  do  a  variety 
of  things  more  effectively  and  with  greater  enjoyment,  it 
will  receive  better  training  than  by  any  scheme  of  formal 
discipline.  The  general  problem  of  the  training  of  the 
imagination,  therefore,  resolves  itself  into  a  number  of 
special  problems  regarding  its  practical  uses,  in  all  the 
activities  of  life,  including  the  enjoyment  of  physical  and 
mental  play. 

Stimuli  to  the  imagination.  No  matter  what  the  task 
in  hand,  mental  images  are  usually  brought  into  mind  and 
grouped  in  such  a  way  as  to  aid  in  its  accomplishment. 
A  brief  discussion  of  objective  stimuli  to  the  imagination 
is  therefore  in  order. 

The  stimulus  most  commonly  used,  especially  in  school, 
is  language.  As  has  already  been  indicated,  words  play 
an  important  part  in  the  early  development  of  the  imagina- 
tion by  helping  to  free  images  from  their  associations  of  a 
particular  time  and  place  so  that  such  images  may  easily 
be  shifted  to  new  settings.  Words  continue  throughout 
life  to  be  very  useful  in  bringing  images  into  the  mind, 


USE  AND  TRAINING  IN  SCHOOL 

but  there  is  a  strong  tendency  for  these  images  to  assume 
a  single  typical  form  and  in  many  instances  to  become 
vague,  except  under  special  conditions. 

Singlejtfocds  do  not,  therefore,  of  themselves  usually 
call  forth  very  vivid  images.  Other  words  and  other  in- 
fluences are  necessary,  and  these  often  combine  to  produce 
a  complex  picture  that  may  be  quite  vivid  as  a  whole, 
although  the  separate  images  involved  in  its  construction 
were  not  formed  in  response  to  single  words.  The  gen- 
eral state  of  mind,  all  the  words  of  a  sentence,  and  the 
trend  of  thought  produced  by  preceding  words  contribute 
to  make  a  vivid  complex  image. 

Another  way  in  which  images  are  made  vivid  is  by 
uncommon  uses  of  words  or  unusual  arrangements  of 
them.  This  is  why  poetic  and  slang  expressions  are  often 
so  effective  in  producing  vivid  images,  while  more  prosy 
language,  where  ordinary  words  are  used  in  the  ordinary 
way,  provides  little  or  no  stimulus  to  the  imagination. 

The  art  of  description  consists  in  using  jyords  in  such 
a  way  as  to  bring  to  the  mind  not  only  the  objects  named 
but  that  with  which  they  are  associated,  and  in  such  an 
order  that  images  once  formed  do  not  need  to  be  greatly 
changed,  while  additional  images,  as  they  appear,  har- 
monize with  and  supplement  them.  The  common  form  of 
the  English  sentence,  in  which  adjectives  precede  nouns, 
arouses  vague  images  of  quality  which  become  fused  into 
a  more  vivid  picture  when  the  object  to  which  they  are 
applied  is  named,  while  the  more  usual  form  of  the  French 
sentence  favors  the  habit  of  imaging  in  an  indefinite  way 
the  thing  named  and  then  giving  it  the  specific  qualities 
implied  by  the  adjectives  that  follow.  Opinions  differ  as 
to  which  language  is  best  psychologically. 

[159] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

Individual  writers  in  every  language  vary  from  the  usual, 
and  most  readers  find  it  much  easier  to  picture  what  is 
described  by  some  writers  than  by  others  with  a  different 
style.  Whatever  manner  of  writing  is  used,  some  images 
must  be  held  in  an  indefinite  form  until  others  are  sug- 
gested so  that  the  whole  scene  may  be  correctly  imaged, 
or  there  must  be  disconcerting  changes  in  imagery.  If 
the  mind  is  held  in  suspense  too  long  before  the  picture 
can  be  completed,  the  images  which  have  been  vaguely 
formed  will  have  disappeared,  and  a  complete  and  vivid 
picture  will  be  impossible. 

Children  do  not  naturally  hold  images  in  suspense  and 
cannot  keep  many  in  mind  at  once,  hence  their  imagina- 
tion is  best  stimulated  by  short  sentences  and  by  the  use 
of  only  one  or  two  descriptive  words  or  phrases  at  a  time. 
A  succession  of  short  sentences  presenting  one  aspect  after 
another  of  the  object  being  described  may  arouse  interest 
and  produce  very  vivid  pictures,  when  a  description  in  one 
sentence  containing  several  corresponding  adjectives  would 
produce  no  definite  imagery. 

Another  very  effective  stimulus  of  the  imagination  is 
action.  Appropriate  movements  made  by  the  person  giv- 
ing a  description  may  take  the  place  of  words  or  may 
supplement  and  emphasize  them,  and  in  this  way  a  much 
more  vivid  idea  of  the  scene  is  produced. 

Not  only  are  gestures  thus  effective  in  stimulating  the 
imagination  but  also  the  attitudes,  expressions  of  face,  and 
tones  of  voice  of  the  speaker  which  suggest  physical  move- 
ments. Observing  and  imaging  such  physical  action  tends 
to  produce  more  or  less  actual  movement  of  the  same  kind 
in  the  listener  and  this  lends  reality  to  the  imaginary 
scene.  This  feeling  of  reality  is  greatly  increased  if  the 

[160] 


USE  AND  TRAINING  IN  SCHOOL 

children  are  permitted  to  actually  perform  some  of  the 
acts  implied  in  the  description.  For  this  reason  imagina- 
tion is  most  effectively  stimulated  and  directed  by  dramatic 
action  on  the  part  of  the  speaker  or  the  hearer  or  both. 

Pictures  may  also  be  an  effective  stimulus,  although  in 
many  instances  showing  pictures  to  children  results  in  a 
substitution  of  perception  for  imagination.  If  the  child 
sees  only  what  the  picture  represents,  there  is  not  much 
imaginative  stimulus.  If,  however,  the  picture  is  of  some-" 
thing  the  like  of  which  he  has  never  seen,  he  may  study 
it  and  seek  to  imagine  how  the  objects  it  depicts  would 
really  look  or  act  under  various  circumstances.  To  a  child 
who  has  never  seen  a  tiger  or  an  elephant  the  picture  of 
one  may  be  a  strong  stimulus  inciting  him  to  image  how 
large  it  really  is,  what  it  may  be  able  to  do,  and  how  it 
looks  when  doing  it.  On  the  contrary,  if  a  child  is  shown 
pictures  of  mountains,  lakes,  houses,  trees,  and  people 
which  do  not  differ  greatly  from  any  which  he  has  previ- 
ously seen  or  of  which  he  has  seen  pictures,  his  imagina- 
tion is  only  slightly  stimulated.  He  may  merely  observe 
what  is  shown  and  make  no  attempt  to  supplement  it  or 
to  modify  it  in  any  way.  He  may  think  little  of  the  real 
size  of  the  objects  and  may  accept  the  idea  that  their  color 
is  always  just  as  it  is  represented  in  the  picture.  Pic- 
tures, therefore,  often  add  to  the  variety  of  mental  images 
that  may  be  produced,  without  increasing  the  power  to 
construct  accurate  mental  pictures  of  things  described. 

Moving  pictures  showing  objects  from  different  points 
of  view  or  giving  a  perception  of  a  series  of  movements 
produce  images  much  more  vivid,  more  correct,  and  real ; 
hence  they  supply  valuable  material  to  the  mind,  but  the 
power  to  construct  complex  scenes  is  not  greatly  increased, 

[161] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

and  probably  the  tendency  to  independent  construction  is 
decreased  by  learning  in  this  way  rather  than  through 
words. 

Diagrams  and  crude  models  are  often  more  effective 
stimuli  to  the  imagination  than  complete  pictures.  There 
are  no  details  shown,  and  the  mind  must  supply  them  in 
response  to  the  suggestive  lines  and  symbols  of  the  dia- 
gram. The  diagram  gives  an  opportunity  for  such  mental 
constructions,  but  will  not  of  itself  produce  them.  It 
sometimes  is  studied  and  memorized  simply  as  a  diagram 
with'very  little  picturing  of  the  actual  things  intended  to 
be  suggested  by  it.  This  is  often  the  case  when  maps 
are  extensively  used  in  geography  and  charts  in  science 
or  history. 

Objects  may  be  a  very  effective  stimulus  of  the  imagina- 
tion, provided  they  are  used  in  connection  with  other  means 
of  arousing  pictures  of  things  not  present  with  which  the 
object  shown  has  been  associated.  The  scenes  of  a  foreign 
country  may  be  made  much  more  vivid  by  showing  a  single 
specimen  of  a  plant  or  an  article  of  clothing  which  formed 
a  part  of  a  scene  being  described.  Pictures  of  single 
objects,  such  as  a  tree  or  a  person  about  whom  something 
is  being  told,  may  also  stimulate  the  imagination,  but  not 
quite  to  the  same  degree  as  a  real  object. 

Directing  the  imagination.  The  factors  which  have 
-  been  mentioned  so  far  are  chiefly  effective  in  stimulating 
the  formation  of  images,  although  with  other  things  they 
do  determine  the  way  in  which  images  shall  be  combined 
into  unified  and  connected  pictures.  Unless,  however, 
there  is  some  thought  connected  with  the  mental  pictures 
which  arouses  expectation  as  to  the  outcome,  or  a  purpose 
that  certain  results  shall  follow,  the  separate  images  have 

[162] 


USE  AND  TRAINING  IN  SCHOOL 

little  meaning  or  interest.  Even  moving  pictures  which 
combine  several  very  effective  stimuli  are  frequently  mean- 
ingless and  uninteresting  when  one  has  not  seen  the  title 
and  does  not  understand  the  progressive  changes  in  the 
situation. 

One  method  which  is  very  effective  in  stimulating  the 
imagination,  and  still  more  helpful  in  directing  it  in  the  y 
right  channels,  is  to  give  a  sufficient  idea  of'what  is  com- 
ing to  excite  expectation.  Incipient  images  appropriate 
to  the  situation  are  aroused  and  some  idea  of  the  gen- 
eral setting  is  formed  so  that  when  the  proper  stimuli  of 
words,  gestures,  pictures,  or  diagrams  are  given,  an  out- 
line of  the  desired  kind  is  promptly  filled  in  by  appropriate 
and  vivid  images. 

Another  mode  of  exciting  and  directing  the  imagina- 
tion is  to  indicate  an  aim  or  a  purpose  to  be  accomplished ;  v 
then,  as  the  mind  is  stimulated  by  appropriate  means  to 
form  images  of  objects  and  acts  involved  in  accomplishing 
that  purpose,  these  images  arouse  others  consistent  with 
them,  and  all  arrange  themselves  in  such  a  way  as  to  lead 
toward  the  accomplishment  of  the  purpose  that  has  previ- 
ously been  represented.  Successful  lesson-planning  is 
that  which  thus  sets  clearly  before  the  pupils  some  end 
to  be  accomplished  and  stimulates  their  imagination  so 
that  the  right  materials  are  brought  to  mind  and  significant 
things  selected  and  arranged  so  as  to  bring  about  the 
results  desired. 

Mental  conditions  favoring  imagination.  The  first 
essential  in  using  the  imagination  is  the  possession  of  the 
necessary  elementary  images  for  constructing  and  creating 
in  the  line  desired.  One  of  the  chief  reasons  why  chil-  \ 

*^ta—  •!" 

dren  should  have  variea  and  extensive  sense  experiences  j 

[163] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

in  early  life  is  that  their  minds  may  be  supplied  with 
images  which  may  be  used  in  constructing  and  creating 
what  is  not  actually  present.  For  this  reason  the  country 
child,  especially  if  he  has  had  some  nature  study,  is  much 
better  prepared  for  the  study  of  some  of  the  sciences  than 
the  one  who  has  always  lived  in  the  city,  while  the  city 
child  knows  more  about  cars,  electric  lights,  elevators,  and 
other  modern  devices.  The  teacher  should  always  ask 
herself  before  presenting  a  lesson,  "What  image  material 
do  these  children  probably  have  to  work  with?"  She 
should  then  plan  to  use  such  material  as  they  have  and 
to  supply  what  is  lacking.  In  doing  this  she  should  re- 
t  member  that  pictures  are  not  in  all  cases  a  reliable  sub- 
/  stitute  for  the  real  things.  For  example,  a  child  in  Boston 
who  claimed  to  know  what  a  cow  was,  when  asked  its  size 
said,  "  It  is  so  long,"  holding  his  fingers  about  an  inch 
apart. 

,  The  second  essential  is  that  children  shall  be  given 
sufficient  time  to  make  their  constructions,  and  a  model 
or  suggestions  must  be  given  to  direct  their  imagination. 
To  ask  children  to  make  a  design  or  write  a  story  of  a 
certain  kind,  even  though  they  have  the  materials  with 
which  to  work,  may  not  be  effective  unless  they  have  had 
or  are  given  some  model  to  direct  their  creations.  To  give 
exercise  to  the  creative  imagination,  directions  must  not 
be  complete  or  the  model  one  that  is  to  be  followed  liter- 
ally. For  example,  the  figures  in  a  rug  design  may  be 
used  for  the  construction  of  a  wall-paper-border  design  ; 
or  an  autobiography  of  a  person  may  be  given  as  a  model 
for  writing  an  autobiography  of  a  penny  or  a  flower 
about  which  the  child  has  studied ;  or  a  pupil  may  be 
asked  to  write  a  humorous  description  of  an  animal,  with 

[164] 


USE  AND  TRAINING  IN  SCHOOL 

a  description  of  some  person  as  a  model,  such  as  is  found 
in  Irving's  "  Ichabod  Crane "  or  in  his  account  of  a 
Dutch  governor. 

Skill  embodied  in  more  or  less  well-established  habits 
is  another  essential  to  the  successful  use  and  expression 
of  imaginative  activity.  A  child  who  has  had  no  experi- 
ence in  using  paints  and  brush  is  poorly  prepared  to  make 
a  design  in  color,  and  one  who  has  not  mastered  the 
mechanics  of  writing  and  spelling  is  not  ready  to  write 
an  original  story.  To  the  above  conditions  must  be  added 
another  before  any  creative  activity  worth  while  will  take 
place  ;  namely,  an  interest  or  desire  that  can  best  be  satis- 
fied by  such  activity.  This  interest  may  be  playful  or  seri- 
ous, according  to  the  age  and  individuality  of  the  child 
and  the  special  circumstances  of  the  case,  and  may  em- 
brace any  line  of  useful  human  activity ;  but  to  be  most 
effective  it  must  be  positive.  Neither  artists  nor  children 
do  their  best  work  under  compulsion,  but  when  trying  to 
accomplish  something  in  which  they  are  deeply  interested. 
If  the  incentive  is  strong  enough,  the  individual  may 
be  induced  to  acquire  the  essentials  previously  named 
(namely,  a  supply  of  elementary  images  and  manual  skill) 
if  he  sees  that  he  cannot  succeed  without  them.  The 
older  type  of  teacher  sought  to  supply  these  essentials 
for  creative  activity  so  that  the  child  would  be  properly 
equipped  before  actually  beginning  such  work ;  the  newer 
type  seeks  to  arouse  desires  and  stimulate  the  child  to 
acquire  the  essentials  for  realizing  them. 

The  thing  attempted  should  not  require  so  much  prepara- 
tion that  interest  is  lost  before  the  work  of  creation  can 
begin.  To  attain  success,  the  desire  to  be  realized  must 
be  represented  by  projects  that  are  not  too  far  in  advance 

[165] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

of  the  child's  preparation  for  accomplishing  them.  Suc- 
cess by  the  older  method  is  also  secured  in  a  similar  way. 
Just  as  soon  as  a  child  has  gained  some  creative  material 
and  acquired  some  skill  in  dealing  with  it  he  should  be 
given  a  chance  to  make  use  of  it.  Failure,  or,  at  least, 
loss  of  time  and  energy,  comes  from  too  great  a  separa- 
tion between  learning  and  its  application  in  the  use  of 
the  constructive  and  creative  powers  in  satisfying  some 
desire  or  need. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Does  practice  in  comparing  images  that  one  has  constructed 
with  actual  perceptions  train  the  imagination?    If  so,  in  what  way 
and  how  much  will  power  of  imagery  as  applied  to  other  things  be 
improved  by  such  practice  ? 

2.  Does  practice  in  using  the  creative  imagination  in  one  line 
increase  originality  in  all  lines?    Give  proofs. 

3.  Mention  some  of  your  successes  or  failures  in  trying  to  stimu- 
late the  imagination  of  children. 

4.  Prepare  several   lesson  plans  with  special  reference  to  the 
imaginative  activity  involved. 

5.  Discuss  the  relative  advantages  of  these  two  methods:  (i)  gain- 
ing the  essential  knowledge  and  skill,  then  using  them  in  a  creative 
way ;  (2)  undertaking  interesting  projects  and  gaining  the  necessary 
knowledge  while  accomplishing  what  is  desired. 


[166] 


CHAPTER  XVI 

LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 

Imagination  involved  in  learning  to  read.  As  already 
mentioned,  words  are  an  important  means  of  developing 
concrete  images.  On  the  other  hand,  learning  to  read 
results  in  developing  visual  images  of  words.  In  learning 
visual  words  and  their  correspondence  with  oral  words 
attention  is  necessarily  directed  toward  imaging  symbols 
rather  than  things.  This  tendency  is  increased  artificially 
by  phonic  drill  and  naturally  by  the  attempt  to  spell  and 
write  words.  The  process  of  learning  to  read,  write,  and 
spell  is  to  a  considerable  extent  one  of  learning  to  form 
accurate  verbal  or  word  images  both  visual  and  auditory. 
A  good  and  rapid  listener  or  reader  passes  at  once  from 
the  sensory  stimulus  of  the  sound  or  sight  of  the  word 
to  a  representation  or  interpretation  of  what  it  stands  for, 
but  in  reading  aloud  and  in  writing  there  must  be  an 
association  or  translation  from  one  kind  of  word  symbol 
to  the  other,  and  in  this  process  the  images  formed  usually 
become  dominantly  verbal. 

Before  beginning  to  learn  to  read  most  children  know 
a  large  number  of  words,  form  more  or  less  definite  repre- 
sentations of  what  they  stand  for,  and  image  in  some 
degree  the  sounds  of  words.  This  is  the  material  that 
they  have  when  they  begin  learning  a  visual  language. 
They  must  now  learn  to  distinguish  the  visual  forms  of 
words  and  to  associate  with  them  images  of  the  sound  of 

[167] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

the  words  and  images  of  the  things  indicated.  The  process 
of  learning  to  read  is  therefore  a  process  of  learning  to 
form  visual  images  of  words  and  of  recalling,  in  response 
to  this  new  stimulus,  the  auditory  images  and  the  images 
of  things  which  are  already  familiar. 

For  purposes  of  silent  reading  and  thought-getting  the 
most  important  thing  necessary  is  that  the  visual  words 
shall  quickly  suggest  the  images  and  ideas  for  which  they 
stand,  grouped  in  accordance  with  the  arrangement  of  the 
words  in  sentences.  In  oral  reading  the  essential  thing 
is  that  when  the  visual  forms  of  words  or  parts  of  words 
are  observed,  the  corresponding  sounds  shall  be  quickly 
imaged  in  the  right  order.  To  be  able  to  read  aloud  and 
at  the  same  time  get  the  thought  requires  that  both  of 
these  processes  shall  be  carried  on  together  in  combina- 
tion with  the  proper  movements  of  the  eye  in  seeing  the 
words  and  of  the  vocal  organs  in  uttering  them.  This  is 
a  complicated  operation,  in  which  several  distinct  but  cor- 
related habits  must  be  formed  which  tend  to  supplant  the 
imaging  process.  One  is  the  habit  of  moving  the  eyes 
along  the  lines,  pausing  momentarily,  from  three  to  eight 
times  for  each  line,  to  recognize  words  or  groups  of  words. 
Another  is  that  of  moving  the  vocal  organs  so  as  to  speak 
the  words  that  were  looked  at  the  instant  before.  Besides 
these  there  are  customs  of  sentence  construction  and  of 
mental  classification  that  facilitate  the  reading  process. 
These  habits  differ  considerably  in  silent  and  in  oral 
reading,  and  the  methods  of  teaching  may  make  promi- 
nent either  those  favorable  to  word-calling  or  to  rapid 
thought-getting. 

Some  teachers  regard  the  process  of  getting  thought 
as  the  most  important,  while  others  lay  most  emphasis 

[168] 


LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 

upon  learning  to  utter  the  proper  sounds  at  the  sight  of 
the  visual  symbols.  The  methods  of  teaching  vary  in 
accordance  with  these  differing  views. 

The  thought  method.  In  the  thought  method  the  chief 
purpose  from  the  first  is  to  gain  the  power  of  imaging 
objects  and  thinking  in  response  to  the  stimulus  of  visual 
words,  while  a  detailed  knowledge  of  the  sounds  associated 
with  the  visual  symbols  is  presupposed  or  acquired  inci- 
dentally. This  method  when  properly  carried  out  makes 
the  child's  previous  knowledge  of  oral  words  and  of  what 
they  stand  for,  and  of  the  usual  arrangement  of  words  in 
sentences,  the  apperceptive  basis  for  learning  the  visual 
words  and  getting  them  properly  associated  with  ideas  and 
verbal  sounds.  The  process  is  somewhat  analogous  to  that 
involved  in  following  the  thought  in  a  moving-picture 
story.  The  title  and  a  few  words  or  sentences  start  the 
thought  in  the  right  direction,  and  the  pictures  show  part 
of  the  story,  while  the  rest  is  filled  in  by  the  constructive 
imagination  in  accordance  with  what  is  known  of  the  usual 
accompaniments  in  such  scenes.  In  a  similar'  way  a  child 
in  learning  to  read  may  be  given  an  idea  of  what  the 
sentence  is  about  and  told  one  or  two  words  in  the  sentence 
which  suggest  to  him  the  oral  words  in  which  the  incident 
could  be  expressed,  and  this  prepares  him  to  guess  what 
oral  words  some  of  the  visual  symbols  must  represent.  If 
the  child  becomes  thoroughly  interested  in  the  story  and 
if  key  words  are  given  him  and  others  added  as  necessary 
(not  too  rapidly  or  too  slowly,  but  just  at  the  right  time 
after  he  has  seen  them,  so  that  his  guess  as  to  what  they 
are  is  confirmed  or  corrected  without  breaking  the  flow 
of  thought  and  destroying  the  interest  of  what  is  coming), 
the  child  will  gain  rapidly  in  the  power  of  getting  thought 

[169] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

from  the  printed  symbols  and  of  uttering  the  words  that 
he  already  knows  correspond  to  that  thought.  Of  course 
he  often  thinks  of  other  words  having  the  same  meaning 
instead  of  the  ones  in  the  book,  but  this  is  a  mistake  that 
may  easily  be  corrected. 

Some  children  become  so  interested  in  guessing  what 
the  thought  is  going  to  be  and  what  the  words  are  that 
they  do  not  observe  closely  the  visual  forms.  It  is  there- 
fore necessary  occasionally  to  call  their  attention  to  the 
likeness  or  difference  of  words  which  they  have  miscalled 
as  compared  with  words  in  previous  sentences  that  they 
have  correctly  named.  Mistakes  may  also  be  guarded 
against  by  having  familiar  words  pointed  out  before  the 
child  begins  reading  another  lesson  or  section  of  the  lesson. 
It  may  be  well  also  to  give  him  the  names  of  important 
words  that  he  is  not  likely  to  guess  correctly. 

When  this  method  is  followed,  the  child  is  continually 
using  his  knowledge  of  things  and  incidents  similar  to 
those  described  in  the  story,  his  acquaintance  with  -oral 
words  and  their  arrangement,  and  his  knowledge  of  visual 
words  which  he  has  recently  learned.  As  learning  pro- 
ceeds, the  knowledge  of  visual  words  which  he  has  acquired 
becomes  an  important  element  in  his  apperception,  and  he 
does  not  have  to  be  told  so  much  of  the  thought  before 
he  begins  reading  nor  so  many  of  the  words  as  he  reads. 

The  process  in  learning  to  read  from  this  time  on  is 
very  similar  to  that  by  which  he  had  previously  learned 
to  talk.  After  a  child  has  learned  a  few  oral  words  he 
hears  many  sentences  containing  those  words  and  guesses 
at  the  meaning  of  the  strange  words  with  which  they  are 
associated.  These  guesses  are  confirmed  or  corrected  by 
the  way  in  which  he  hears  the  new  words  used  in  other 

[170] 


LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 

sentences.  The  meanings  of  words  are  learned  in  this 
way  in  a  large  proportion  of  cases. 

In  the  thought  method  of  learning  to  read,  the  objects 
and  incidents  described  should  be  familiar  but  interesting, 
and  the  words  and  their  arrangement  should  be  such  as 
the  child  has  often  heard  and  used.  With  such  an  apper- 
ceptive  background  he  will  soon  learn  many  visual  words. 
After  a  considerable  vocabulary  has  been  acquired,  the 
words  which  are  familiar  to  him  suggest  the  thought  of 
the  sentence,  and  the  combination  of  letters  in  a  new  word 
is  suggestive  of  its  sound.  Thus  the  child  quickly  adds 
new  words  to  both  his  oral  and  his  visual  vocabulary. 

At  this  stage  it  may  be  necessary,  however,  to  lead  the 
child  to  observe  more  closely  the  various  combinations  of 
letters  and  to  associate  them  more  accurately  with  the 
sounds  for  which  they  stand.  This  will  help  him  to  pro- 
nounce correctly  the  new  words  that  he  meets  and  prepare 
the  way  for  learning  to  spell. 

The  symbol  or  phonic  method.  When  word  naming 
is  regarded  as  the  important  thing  in  the  early  processes 
of  learning  to  read,  the  attempt  is  made  to  get  the  child  to 
image  not  so  much  the  thing  for  which  the  word  stands  as 
the  visual  form  of  the  word  or  the  letters  composing  it  and 
the  sounds  corresponding  to  them.  The  child  is  frequently 
shown  words  or  letter  combinations  and  given  the  corre- 
sponding sounds.  He  also  sounds  words  and  then  they  are 
written  for  him.  The  same  process  is  repeated  over  and 
over  with  letters  and  with  common  combinations  of  letters 
until  the  child  readily  images  one  kind  of  symbol  when  he 
sees  or  hears  the  other.  Words  rather  than  sentences  are 
studied,  and  words  are  separated  into  parts,  and  parts  are 
built  up  into  complete  words. 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

After  a  considerable  period  of  time  the  child  has  suffi- 
cient apperceptive  knowledge  of  the  correspondence  be- 
tween the  two  kinds  of  symbols  to  be  able  to  guess  or 
infer  fairly  well  the  sounds  corresponding  to  the  visual 
symbols  of  new  words,  or,  in  other  words,  to  read  in  the 
sense  of  calling  words.  This  knowledge  enables  him  to 
guess  or  infer  what  combinations  of  letters  must  be  used 
in  a  new  word.  This  method,  instead  of  using  as  an  apper- 
ceptive basis  thought  and  symbol  images  already  familiar 
to  the  child  when  he  enters  school,  seeks  to  build  up  a 
new  set  of  images  of  visual  symbols  and  to  get  them  asso- 
ciated'so  closely  with  sounds  that  they  will  at  once  sug- 
gest the  words.  By  such  a  method  the  child  may  acquire 
more  or  less  facility  in  naming  words,  both  familiar  and 
unfamiliar,  which  he  sees  and  in  spelling  those  that  he 
hears.  Even  with  the  best  of  teaching,  however,  he  is 
likely  to  make  mistakes  with  new  words,  partly  because 
the  English  language  is  not  a  phonetic  one,  and  the  usual 
is  the  correct  in  scarcely  three  fourths  of  the  cases  he 
meets,  and  partly  because  there  is  no  means  of  knowing 
how  new  words  are  accented  unless  they  are  marked  in 
accordance  with  symbols  with  which  he  has  been  made 
familiar. 

After  the  child  has  attained  some  facility  in  recogniz- 
ing words  from  his  knowledge  of  letter  combinations  he 
may  be  led  to  think  of  what  the  word  stands  for  as  well 
as  its  sound  and  then  to  read  in  the  sense  of  getting 
thought  from  the  printed  page.  If  the  drill  upon  symbols 
has  continued  for  some  time  there  will  be  a  certain  amount 
of  difficulty  in  getting  him  to  image  objects  and  events 
instead  of  symbols  and  in  getting  him  to  speak  the 
sentence  which  he  sees  instead  of  merely  naming  the 

[172] 


LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 

words  of  which  it  is  composed.  The  phonic  method 
strictly  carried  out  from  the  first  makes  no  use  of  ap- 
perceptive  thought  material  or  of  knowledge  of  oral 
symbols,  but  seeks  to  build  up  an  apperceptive  mass  of 
visual  symbols  to  be  associated  with  oral  ones.  Such  a 
method  is  wasteful  of  time  and  energy,  and  it  also 
forms  the  habit  of  giving  attention  to  symbols  which 
later  interferes  with  the  more  important  thought  processes 
involved  in  reading. 

In  the  methods  of  teaching  reading  now  in  most  common 
use  the  thought  method  and  the  phonic  method  are  usu- 
ally combined,  with  one  or  the  other  preceding  and  domi- 
nating. In  the  best  methods  thought  is  chiefly  prominent, 
while  symbol  learning  and  imaging  are  incidental. 

Learning  to  spell.  It  must  be  admitted  that  the  phonic 
method  of  learning  to  read,  whatever  its  wastefulness  and 
disadvantages  for  that  purpose,  is  a  pretty  good  prepara- 
tion for  learning  to  spell.  One  who  has  been  well  trained 
in  phonics  can  guess  or  infer  in  a  large  percentage  of 
cases  the  letter  combinations  used  in  spelling  new  words, 
but  there  will  still  remain  a  considerable  number  of  words 
whose  spelling  is  contrary  to  all  the  teachings  of  phonics, 
and  to  which  any  one  of  two  or  more  rules  regarding 
letter  combinations  might  apply  with  no  clue  as  to  the 
correct  one.  All  of  the  advantages  which  phonics  can 
give  may  be  gained  in  a  fairly  short  time  after  a  child 
has  learned  to  read  by  giving  him  a  comparatively  small 
amount  of  drill  in  phonics  in  connection  with  learning 
to  spell  and  in  pronouncing  new  words.  In  learning  to 
read  by  the  thought  method  he  has  incidentally  associated 
a  great  many  letters  and  their  combinations  with  the  appro- 
priate sounds,  and  it  requires  only  a  little  detailed  study 

[173] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

to  make  this  knowledge  accurate  enough  to  be  of  con- 
siderable assistance  to  him  in  spelling  and  in  the  use  of 
the  dictionary. 

In  addition  to  this  it  must  be  recognized  that  spelling 
is  not  necessarily  dependent  in  any  degree  upon  a  knowl- 
edge of  phonics.  A  child  who  has  learned  to  read  is  able 
to  form  more  or  less  clear  visual  images  of  the  words  that 
are  familiar  to  him.  If  these  images  are  made  sufficiently 
specific,  he  may  spell  correctly  without  any  knowledge  of 
phonics.  In  the  case  of  most  people  at  the  present  time 
visual  images  doubtless  play  a  larger  part  in  the  process 
of  recalling  the  spelling  of  words  than  any  other  form  of 
imagery.  This  is  especially  true  of  those  who  do  a  great 
deal  of  reading.  They  see  many  words  so  frequently  that 
they  form  images  of  them  and  can  tell  how  they  are 
spelled  without  ever  having  made  any  effort  to  learn. 
Sometimes  this  image  is  not  perfect  enough  to  enable  a 
person  to  spell  a  word  with  assurance,  but  after  the  word 
is  written  he  can  compare  it  with  his  image  and  tell 
whether  it  is  correct  or  not.  A  large  proportion  of  people 
would  doubtless  become  fairly  good  spellers  without  any 
training  other  than  that  involved  incidentally  in  reading 
and  writing. 

There  are  some,  however,  who  do  not  learn  how  to 
spell  in  this  way.  They  do  not  observe  words  in  detail, 
but  note  only  the  general  form  which  suggests  the  thought. 
Such  persons  must  have  their  attention  called  to  the  exact 
letters  and  their  order  in  words  to  enable  them  to  learn 
to  spell.  If  they  have  a  natural  tendency  towards  specific 
auditory  imagery,  phonic  drill  may  be  of  great  assistance. 
If,  however,  their  imagery  is  dominantly  visual,  but  lack- 
ing in  detail,  they  may  be  helped  most  by  teaching  them 

[174] 


LEARNING  TO  READ  AND  SPELL 

to  give  close  attention  to  the  parts  of  words  and  by  giv- 
ing them  a  great  deal  of  practice  in  comparing  their 
perceptions  of  words  with  their  visual  images  of  them. 
It  is  often  of  advantage  to  associate  this  exercise  with 
practice  in  writing  the  words.  One  or  more  words  may 
be  placed  before  the  child  for  observation,  then  they  may 
be  covered  or  erased  while  he  images  how  they  looked 
and  then  writes  them.  What  he  has  written  should  then 
be  compared  with  the  visual  copy  to  see  if  it  is  correct. 
For  small  children,  whose  attention  is  more  or  less  taken 
up  by  the  process  of  writing,  the  words  must  be  short  or 
their  images  cannot  be  held  in  mind  until  they  are  written. 
In  all  copying  that  children  do  they  should  be  encouraged 
to  look  at  what  they  are  copying  less  and  less  often  and 
hence  to  carry  in  their  minds  images  not  only  of  longer 
words  but  of  several  words  at  a  time.  Separate  printed 
letters  that  can  be  made  into  words  by  children  who  are 
not  able  to  handle  a  pencil  may  be  helpful  to  them.  No 
device  of  this  kind,  however,  is  equal  to  a  typewriter  as 
a  means  of  learning  to  spell,  but  as  yet  it  is  not  feasible 
to  have  these  machines  for  use  by  primary  pupils.  Learn- 
ing to  spell  is  distinctly  a  process  of  learning  to  form 
auditory,  visual,  or  kinaesthetic  images,  although  in  the 
latter  case  especially  one  may  spell  by  habit  without  dis- 
tinctly imaging  the  separate  letters  before  writing  or  utter- 
ing them.  Each  teacher  should  experiment  with  her  pupils, 
having  them  use  different  methods  of  studying  their  spell- 
ing, employing  sight,  sound,  or  movement  processes,  and 
helping  them  to  discover  which  mode  of  studying  and 
imaging  words  is  best  for  each  one. 


[175] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

EXERCISES 

1.  Cover  the  page  from  which  a  rapid  reader  is  reading  aloud  and 
notice  how  many  words  he  can  utter  afterwards.   This  will  show  how 
far  his  eyes  are  ahead  of  the  movements  of  his  vocal  organs. 

2.  Observe  the  eyes  of  a  reader,  either  directly  or  with  the  aid  of 
a  hand  mirror,  as  you  sit  beside  him  and  count  the  number  of  pauses 
per  line.    Do  this  for  persons  of  varying  age  and  rates  of  reading 
and  compare  the  number  of  pauses  per  line  with  the  number  of 
words  read  per  second  or  minute. 

3.  Study  different  individuals  as  to  their  reading  rate  and  habits 
of  reading  and  their  ability  to  get  thought  by  silent  or  oral  reading. 

4.  Summarize  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  making  phonics 
prominent  in  teaching  reading  and  of  making  thought  prominent. 

5.  Discuss  the  various  methods  of  learning  to  spell  and  their 
relation  to  imagery  in  the  case  of  special  individuals. 


[1/6] 


CHAPTER  XVII 

IMAGINATION  IN  DRAWING  AND  CONSTRUCTING 

Images  and  drawing.  Without  entering  into  details 
regarding  the  various  kinds  of  images  which  may  or  may 
not  be  concerned  in  directing  the  movements  of  the  hand 
in  drawing,  it  may  be  said  that  one  usually  holds  in  mind 
some  sort  of  image  of  how  the  model  looks.  A  few  per- 
sons may  draw  very  simple  forms  without  having  vivid 
images,  simply  making  the  lines  which  are  necessary  with- 
out picturing  how  they  are  to  look.  In  the  majority  of 
cases,  however,  the  person  who  can  draw  well,  especially 
from  memory,  is  able  to  image  not  only  the  general 
appearance  of  objects  but  their  details. 

Experiments  show  that  there  are  various  ways  in  which 
memory  in  connection  with  drawing  is  developed.  A  very 
common  plan  is  to  look  at  the  object  and  then  glance 
away,  or  close  the  eyes  and  try  to  picture  its  appearance 
in  detail.  In  drawing  from  a  model  this  method  is  fol- 
lowed to  some  extent,  parts  of  the  object  being  observed, 
then  imaged  while  they  are  being  drawn.  Another  way 
is  to  look  at  an  object  and  make  in  imagination  the  move- 
ments that  will  be  necessary  in  order  to  draw  it.  A  third 
method  is  to  observe  the  object,  noting  its  resemblance 
to  some  familiar  or  standard  form  and  also  some  of  its 
special  peculiarities  or  variations  from  the  usual,  drawing 
it  later  from  these  memories  or  associations.  For  exam- 
ple, the  object  as  a  whole  looks  like  a  tree,  a  house,  a 

[»77j 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

hatchet,  or  a  geometrical  figure  with  a  certain  number  of 
angles  or  curves,  and  it  is  thus  recalled  and  reproduced 
chiefly  by  means  of  verbal  associations. 

The  first  two  methods  seem  to  be  more  effective  if  the 
drawing  is  executed  immediately,  but  the  images  are  likely 
to  fade,  and  there  is  no  means  of  making  them  vivid  or 
of  recalling  the  necessary  details,  while  the  third  method 
makes  recall  more  sure  and  certain.  A  combination  of 
all  three  methods  may  sometimes  best  be  employed. 

Models  and  images.  Some  persons  in  drawing  observe 
the  model  very  frequently  and  reproduce  its  details  with- 
out variation.  Others  observe  the  general  appearance  of 
what  is  to  be  drawn  and  then  reproduce  its  essential 
features,  perhaps  with  intentional  modifications. 

When  children  first  begin  drawing  they  usually  glance 
at  the  object  and  quickly  represent  something  of  the  same 
type.  If  not  required  to  do  so,  they  do  not  observe  the  ob- 
ject for  any  length  of  time,  and  they  represent  the  species 
or  class  to  which  it  belongs  rather  than  the  individual 
specimen  before  them. 

This  is  also  the  method  followed  with  some  modifica- 
tions by  some  skilled  artists,  especially  the  Japanese. 
A  Japanese  artist  who  wishes  to  draw  a  bird,  for  exam- 
ple, may  spend  many  days  in  observing  its  form,  attitude, 
and  movements  and  selecting  the  appearance  that  to  him 
is  most  satisfactory.  Then,  without  any  model  before  him, 
he  draws  the  picture  with  rapid,  sure  strokes.  This  method 
of  drawing  results  in  free,  graceful  lines,  unified  and  har- 
monized, while  the  drawings  from  a  model,  though  more 
exact,  are  likely  to  be  stiff  and  less  artistic  as  a  whole. 

In  teaching  children  to  draw  it  is  probably  better  from 
the  first  to  encourage  drawing  from  the  images  in  mind. 

[178] 


IMAGINATION  IN  DRAWING  AND  CONSTRUCTING 

They  do  need,  however,  a  good  deal  of  practice  in  seeing 
essential  details  as  well  as  general  appearance.  This  may 
be  accomplished  by  having  them  observe  one  or  more 
features  of  an  object  until  these  are  clearly  imaged  and 
then  having  them  draw  those  features  before  they  again 
look  at  the  object.  The  number  of  things  to  be  observed 
may  be  gradually  increased  until  objects  that  are  not  too 
complex  may  be  correctly  drawn  without  reexamination. 

In  the  case  of  complex  objects,  especially  landscapes, 
the  constructive  and  creative  imagination  as  well  as  the 
reproductive  may  be  used.  Whatever  serves  as  a  model 
is  not  copied  in  all  its  details,  but  parts  of  it  are  combined 
with  images  derived  from  other  sources  so  as  to  make  a 
more  beautiful  picture  in  which  certain  features  of  the 
scene  or  object  are  so  prominent  that  an  observer  of  the 
picture  cannot  fail  to  see  them,  although  he  might  not 
have  noticed  them  in  the  original. 

Constructing  and  imaging.  In  making  boxes,  portfolios, 
toys,  tools,  and  machines  the  imagination  usually  plays  an 
important  part.  It  is  not  infrequently  the  case  that  per- 
sons who  are  very  deficient  in  understanding  and  express- 
ing ideas  by  means  of  words  are  unusually  skillful  not 
only  in  their  movements  but  in  understanding  and  plan- 
ning constructions  of  various  kinds.  In  some  instances, 
at  least,  this  is  due  to  a  considerable  extent  to  the  fact 
that  they  have  a  strong  tendency  to  think  not  in  words 
but  in  images,  especially  those  involving  space  relations. 

Some  individuals  of  this  type  are  able  to  hold  an  image 
of  an  object  in  mind  and  see  it  from  any  angle  that  they 
choose  and  note  just  how  each  part  is  related  to  every 
other  part.  They  can  mentally  select  and  arrange  the 
materials  for  a  box,  a  bird  house,  a  trap,  a  dress,  or  a  hat, 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

and  the  parts  will  fit  just  as  they  had  anticipated.  Other 
persons  gain  a  general  idea  from  the  drawing  or  descrip- 
tion or  from  their  own  planning  of  how  the  objects  will 
appear,  but  the  image  is  so  lacking  in  detail  that  when 
they  attempt  to  put  the  parts  together  they  do  not  get 
the  results  they  had  anticipated.  It  is  of  great  advantage 
to  be  able  to  form  clear  and  detailed  images  of  what  is 
to  be  constructed,  although  that  power  is  not  absolutely 
necessary  to  success.  If  the  general  image  of  the  object 
to  be  made  is  supplemented  by  the  memorizing  of  sym- 
bols describing  the  necessary  details,  the  results  may  be 
even  more  accurate  than  when  images  are  relied  upon. 

Designing  and  inventing.  Images  are  very  convenient 
in  designing  and  inventing,  although  they  are  not  abso- 
lutely essential.  Many  persons  do  not  attempt  to  image 
a  whole  design  in  detail,  but  mentally  represent  and  exe- 
cute a  part  at  a  time,  while  holding  in  mind  a  general 
idea  of  the  whole.  In  a  large  proportion  of  cases  not 
even  this  much  imaging  is  attempted,  but  trial  arrange- 
ments of  real  objects  or  lines  are  used  instead  of  the  cor- 
responding mental  representation.  Those  arrangements 
which  seem  to  harmonize  best  with  the  general  image  of 
what  is  to  be  made  are  then  chosen,  and  the  design  or 
the  mechanism  is  worked  out  far  enough  to  show  how 
it  is  going  to  look  or  whether  it  will  be  successful.  Many 
trial  constructions  may  be  made  before  the  design  is 
completed  or  the  mechanism  finished. 

Very  few  people  are  able  to  image  a  whole  new  crea- 
tion in  detail  before  they  construct  any  part  of  it.  Instead, 
they  image  to  some  extent,  then  construct  enough  to  see 
what  the  results  are  going  to  be,  then  image  variations 
or  additions. 

[180] 


IMAGINATION  IN  DRAWING  AND  CONSTRUCTING 

Artistic  designing  requires  much  the  same  kind  of 
imagination  as  invention,  except  that  ideals  of  the  beauti- 
ful play  a  larger  part  in  designing,  while  a  knowledge  of 
the  nature  of  the  materials  to  be  employed  and  of  the 
forces  involved  is  absolutely  essential  in  inventing.  In 
both  cases  one  must  have  had  previous  experience,  giving 
a  knowledge  of  the  use  of  materials  and  of  plans  that 
may  be  followed ;  and  then  there  must  be  an  ideal  to  be 
realized  or  an  end  to  be  gained  which  directs  the  specific 
arrangement  of  materials  so  that  the  new  combination 
will  be  beautiful  or  useful. 

The  successful  designer  or  inventor  must  not  follow 
familiar  methods  too  closely,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  if  he 
varies  too  much  from  all  accepted  models  there  are  many 
chances  to  one  that  he  will  produce  the  bizarre  rather  than 
the  beautiful  or  the  useful. 

Originality  in  designing  is  fostered  by  a  limited  amount 
of  exact  copying  from  good  models  of  various  kinds  and 
by  a  good  deal  of  practice  in  using  the  elements  of  such 
designs  modified  and  combined  in  a  variety  of  ways  for 
different  purposes,  artistic  and  useful. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Have  several  children  or  older  persons  study  some  unfamiliar 
figure  before  them  in  any  way  that  they  choose  for  two  minutes 
without  drawing  it.    At  the  end  of  that  time  ask  them  to  draw  it 
from  memory.    Observe  and  inquire  as  to  the  methods  used  by  dif- 
ferent individuals  and  their  success.    A  week  later  ask  them  again  to 
draw  the  figure  from  memory  and  to  tell  whether  they  remembered 
chiefly  by  an  image  of  the  figure  or  by  words  and  associations. 

2.  Discuss  the  comparative  advantage  of  teaching  pupils  to  draw 
from  a  model  and  from  memory.   When  and  to  what  extent  should 
each  method  be  used? 

[1*1] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

3.  The  ability  to  image  constructively  and  in  detail  may  be  tested 
by  asking  pupils  to  figure  out  how  much  material  will  be  needed  to 
construct  a  paper  or  a  wooden  box  of  a  certain  size  or  to  describe 
the  design  that  will  result  from  certain  cuts  in  a  folded  paper. 

4.  Get  reports  from  various  persons  as  to  how  far  they  are  able 
to  plan  constructions  in  the  absence  of  the  materials  to  be  used ;  or 
ask  several  persons  to  plan  a  rug  border,  using  rectangles  of  two 
sizes  and  two  colors  without  the  rectangles  or  anything  to  represent 
them.    Then  let  them  try  it  using  written  words,  then  drawings,  then 
the  rectangles  themselves.    Note  the  rapidity  and  success  attending 
each  method. 


[182] 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 

Front  concrete  things  to  symbols.  The  child's  early 
ideas  of  number  are  based  on  perceptions  and  images  of 
objects.  More  or  less  of  similar  things  may  mean  to  the 
child  merely  greater  or  less  space  covered  by  those  things. 
In  the  case  of  objects  which  are  not  exactly  alike,  the 
child  has  an  image  of  how  each  one  looks  and  thus  knows 
whether  all  are  present.  When  he  is  first  being  taught 
to  count  objects,  he  is  often  inclined  to  regard  the  num- 
ber names  as  the  specific  names  of  the  objects.  For 
example,  if  the  fingers  are  counted  beginning  with  the 
little  finger,  the  child  may  be  inclined  to  insist  that  the 
little  finger  shall  always  be  called  one. 

After  numbers  have  been  used  a  great  deal  in  indicat- 
ing the  size  of  groups  of  objects,  the  child  begins  to  think 
of  groups  of  different  sizes,  not  wholly  by  means  of  images 
of  the  objects  but  by  means  of  the  number  symbol  indi- 
cating the  size  of  the  group.  When  he  first  notes  the 
result  of  combining  groups  or  taking  objects  away  from 
groups  (for  instance,  putting  two  and  one  together  or  tak- 
ing one  away  from  three),  he  is  likely  to  image  the  objects 
and  the  change  produced  by  adding  to  or  taking  away 
from  the  group.  In  counting  a  series  of  sounds  there  is 
more  or  less  imaging  of  the  sounds,  and  in  such  counting, 
as  in  counting  visual  objects,  sensations  and  images  of 
movement  play  a  large  part.  The  child  points  to  each 
object  when  counting  a  visible  group,  and  the  result  will 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

be  correct  only  when  the  pointing  and  the  utterance  of 
the  number  symbol  correspond  with  each  other  and  with 
•  the  movements  of  the  eyes  as  he  fixates  one  object  after 
another. 

The  number  symbols  which  the  child  uses  and  images 
before  going  to  school  are  auditory  in  character,  and  all 
of  his  number  thinking  which  is  not  in  the  form  of  con- 
crete images  involves  auditory  motor  images  of  number 
symbols.  Two  and  one  bring  to  his  mind  the  image  of 
three  as  heard  or  spoken,  because  that  has  so  often  fol- 
lowed the  others.  Before  going  to  school  the  number 
thinking  of  many  children  is  largely  in  terms  of  auditory 
motor  images,  and  they  are  able  to  compute  to  some 
extent  with  abstract  numbers. 

From  auditory  to  visual  images.  Formerly  all  the 
child's  number  training  for  several  years  of  schooling  was 
carried  on  in  auditory  symbols,  and  only  after  becoming 
familiar  with  a  great  many  number  combinations  and  all 
the  common  operations  of  arithmetic,  and  having  had  con- 
siderable practice  in  solving  mentally  problems  involving 
small  numbers,  was  he  expected  to  begin  using  visual 
symbols.  Then  he  worked  problems  similar  to  those  he 
had  previously  solved,  except  that  the  numbers  were 
larger  and  could  more  easily  be  handled  by  means  of  the 
slightly  differing  processes  of  written  arithmetic. 

In  modern  schools  written  symbols  are  used  almost  as 
soon  as  the  child  begins  work  in  number.  This  makes 
it  necessary  that  he  shall  learn  the  visual  mathematical 
language  at  the  same  time  that  he  is  learning  number 
combinations  and  the  processes  by  which  calculations  are 
made.  The  process  of  learning  the  visual  language  of 
arithmetic  and  that  of  learning  the  number  facts  and 

[184] 


IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 

mathematical  relations  are  often  confused  not  only  in  the 
child's  mind  but  also  in  that  of  his  teacher.  The  child 
may  know  the  facts  and  how  to  calculate  the  results,  but 
not  be  able  to  indicate  the  process  accurately  in  visual 
symbols.  The  teacher,  in  attempting  to  help  the  child, 
frequently  fails  to  realize  where  the  difficulty  lies  and  adds 
to  his  perplexity  by  trying  to  explain  to  him  what  he 
already  knows,  in  just  those  terms  which  are  the  source 
of  his  difficulty. 

Recently  the  methods  used  in  primary  number  work 
have  changed,  so  that  to  a  great  extent  the  child  learns 
the  visual  symbols  of  arithmetic  from  association  with 
concrete  objects  rather  than  by  a  direct  translation  from 
auditory  to  visual  symbols.  Two  groups  of  objects  are 
added  to  make  a  larger  group,  then  the  symbols  2  +  2  =  4 
are  written  as  the  arithmetical  way  of  indicating  what  has 
been  done.  Such  learning  of  the  visual  language  of  arith- 
metic from  direct  experience  with  concrete  objects  gives 
a  much  more  complete  knowledge  of  the  significance  of 
the  visual  symbols.  The  child  may  at_any_time  substitute 
for  the  symbols  an  image  pfTKe  objects  and  of  what  was 
done  with  them. 

Because  of  this  the  situation  is  now  much  better  than 
it  was  when  written  work  was  first  introduced  into  the 
primary  grades,  but  there  is  still  some  ground  for  ques- 
tioning whether  the  child's  mathematical  thinking  would 
not  be  clearer  if  it  were  carried  on  by  means  of  the  famil- 
iar auditory  motor  symbols  until  he  becomes  acquainted 
with  all  the  fundamental  facts  and  processes,  before  be- 
ginning to  use  the  visual  language  of  arithmetic  and  the 
written  methods  of  calculating,  which  are  of  advantage 
only  in  dealing  with  large  numbers. 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

However  this  may  be,  inquiry  reveals  the  fact  that  a 
large  proportion  of  those  who  have  gone  through  the 
grades  make  much  use  of  visual  symbols  of  numbers  and 
operations.  If  asked  to  perform  an  operation  such  as 
"  fifteen  times  twenty,"  nearly  all  will  image  the  numbers 
with  the  line  drawn  beneath  and  the  results  written  below. 
So  fixed  are  these  number  forms  that  children  often  think 
it  would  be  impossible  to  perform  the  operation  of  sub- 
traction with  the  smaller  number  at  the  top,  or  the  opera- 
tion of  division  with  the  position  of  the  divisor  and  the 
quotient  interchanged.  Some  go  farther  than  this  and 
visually  image  all  numbers  as  arranged  in  a  certain  way, 
such  as  in  a  line  running  up  or  down  or  sideways  and 
changing  its  direction  at  tens  or  hundreds,  or  they  may 
be  arranged  in  circles  or  in  very  complex  forms.  With 
some  persons  such  number  forms  seem  to  be  helpful  in 
making  combinations,  while  with  others  they  are  of  no  use. 

The  tendency  to  carry  on  mathematical  calculations  in 
terms  of  symbols  often  becomes  so  strong  that  the  pupil 
does  not  image  the  concrete  even  in  situations  when  it  is 
really  necessary  to  correct  thinking.  Children  who  have 
been  adding  numbers,  when  asked,  "What  are  three  apples 
and  four  oranges  ? "  are  likely  to  say  "  Seven,"  without 
thinking  of  the  concrete  reality  but  only  of  the  symbol 
relations.  The  practice  of  giving  many  concrete  problems 
to  be  solved  rapidly  naturally  increases  rather  than  de- 
creases this  tendency.  The  child  who  stops  to  image  the 
objects  in  their  proper  relation  will  be  the  last  one  to  get 
the  answer,  while  the  one  who  does  no  imaging,  but  thinks 
only  of  the  symbol  relations  suggested  by  the  words,  will 
be  the  first.  A  slight  change  in  the  order  of  the  words 
in  stating  a  problem  will  often  lead  rapid  workers  to 

[186] 


IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 

perform  the  wrong  operation.  Sometimes  it  is  difficult  for 
children  to  image  the  concrete  situation  and  correct  the 
error  into  which  they  had  been  led  by  thinking  in  sym- 
bols only.  To  avoid  this  difficulty  it  is  well  to  encourage 
deliberate  and  accurate  work  when  concrete  problems  are 
given,  leaving  the  rapid  calculation  for  drill  exercises  with 
abstract  numbers. 

Measurement  and  imaging.  Problems  involving  meas- 
urement are  also  a  good  corrective  for  the  tendency  to  the 
exclusive  use  of  symbols  in  mathematical  calculations. 
When  measurements  were  introduced  late  in  the  course, 
as  was  formerly  the  case,  children  nearly  always  had  a 
great  deal  of  difficulty  because  they  had  learned  to  think 
in  symbols  only,  whereas  correct  thinking  in  mensuration 
is  possible  only  when  the  concrete  facts  are  considered. 

At  the  present  time  a  large  proportion  of  high-school 
graduates,  when  asked  to  tell  how  much  lumber  will  be 
required  to  make  a  box  four  feet  square,  will  begin  to 
calculate  with  symbols,  without  imaging  the  concrete  prob- 
lem or  asking  whether  the  measurement  given  is  outside 
or  inside  measurement,  and  without  inquiring  the  thick- 
ness of  the  lumber.  Even  if  they  are  told  in  the  problem 
that  the  measurement  is  for  the  outside  dimensions  and 
that  the  lumber  is  two  inches  thick,  many  of  them  will 
not  allow  for  that  thickness  in  computing  the  length  of 
boards  required,  according  to  the  kind  of  joint  that  is  to  be 
made.  For  similar  reasons  many  of  them  will  fail  in  com- 
puting how  many  feet  of  picture  molding  will  be  required 
to  frame  a  picture  on  a  mat  that  is  twelve  by  eighteen 
inches.  They  will  perhaps  not  even  realize  at  first  that 
it  is  necessary  to  know  the  width  of  the  molding  in  order 
to  solve  the  problem.  It  is  true  that  they  may  be  taught 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

a  formula  such  as,  "  The  number  of  inches  of  molding 
required  will  be  equal  to  the  perimeter  of  the  mat  plus 
eight  times  the  width  of  the  molding,"  and  in  accordance 
with  this  formula  may  work  problems  involved  in  picture- 
framing,  but  this  will  not  help  them  in  solving  other 
problems  of  mensuration. 

If,  however,  in  the  study  of  mensuration  they  have 
first  solved  the  problem  by  manipulating  objects,  then  by 
imaging  how  the  objects  will  be  related  to  each  other, 
and  finally  have  used  a  derived  formula  which  will  apply 
to  all  such  cases,  they  are  likely  to  retain  the  ability  to 
use  images  whenever  necessary.  Hence,  when  a  new 
problem  in  mensuration  is  given  for  which  they  have  no 
formula,  they  will  at  once  begin  to  image  the  concrete 
situation  or  to  represent  it  by  objects  or  lines,  and  then 
will  work  the  problem  correctly  and  perhaps  be  able  to 
derive  a  formula  by  which  all  such  problems  may  be 
quickly  solved.  For  the  above  reasons  it  is  of  advantage 
to  have  problems  of  mensuration  early  introduced  into  the 
course  as  a  natural  corrective  to  the  tendency  to  think 
more  or  less  vaguely  in  terms  of  symbols  only  and  to  use 
formulas  without  retaining  the  ability  to  represent  con- 
cretely the  situation  and  processes  which  they  indicate. 

It  is  probably  because  of  the  fact  that  so  much  of  the 
practice  work  in  arithmetic  is  concerned  with  the  manipu- 
lation of  symbols  according  to  rule  that  children  in  schools 
where  a  large  amount  of  time  is  devoted  to  arithmetic  do 
no  better  than  those  who  spend  a  much  shorter  time  upon 
that  subject.  This  may  also  be  the  reason  why  some 
graduates  of  the  schools  can  do  nothing  without  pencil 
and  paper  and  even  with  them  may  be  unable  to  solve 
little  practical  problems  of  a  type  new  to  them,  which 

[188] 


IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 

may  be  readily  solved  mentally  by  persons  who  have 
had  a  small  amount  of  schooling. 

Computing  and  imaging.  Before  the  child  knows  the 
exact  significance  of  numbers  he  usually  learns  something 
of  their  relative  meaning.  He  knows  that  twenty  is  a  great 
deal  more  than  three,  and  a  hundred  is  more  than  twenty, 
while  a  thousand  or  a  million  mean  a  very  great  many.  The 
person  who  has  had  little  or  no  mathematical  training  con- 
tinues to  estimate  rather  than  to  calculate,  and  he  may  form 
a  fairly  correct  judgment  as  to  what  the  right  answer  to  a 
problem  must  be,  although  he  cannot  figure  it  accurately. 

The  child  trained  in  school  arithmetic  often  loses  en- 
tirely this  ability  to  judge  approximately  what  the  answer 
should  be.  His  mind  is  occupied  with  the  details  of  cal- 
culation in  accordance  with  rules  that  he  has  previously 
followed,  and  he  fails  to  image  the  concrete  situation  and 
cannot  tell,  if  he  has  made  a  mistake,  whether  his  error 
is  small  or  large.  In  trying  to  make  the  child  an  exact 
calculator  he  is  frequently  rendered  unable  to  use  his 
practical  judgment,  because  he  images  only  symbols  and 
processes  instead  of  concrete  facts.  The  remedy  for  this 
is  to  treat  arithmetic  in  the  grades  not  as  an  exact  science 
but  as  a  practical  art. 

Imagination  and  problem-solving.  One  reason  why 
the  teaching  of  arithmetic  has  been  so  unsatisfactory  to 
men  engaged  in  practical  affairs  is  that  children  have  had 
so  much  drill  work  and  have  had  so  many  problems  whose 
conditions  they  did  not  and  could  not  image  that  they 
follow  rules  blindly  and  do  not  know  how  to  apply  their 
knowledge  to  new  things.  A  large  proportion  of  the 
problems  in  the  arithmetic  are  concerned  with  transac- 
tions with  which  the  child  has  had  little  or  no  experience. 

[189] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

A  complete  change  in  arithmetical  work  is  sometimes 
produced  by  observing  or  taking  part  in  laying  a  carpet, 
making  a  box,  constructing  a  sidewalk,  or  by  dramatic 
representations  of  business  transactions. 

A  feeble-minded  boy,  who  could  not  tell  what  three  and 
four  were,  could  answer  correctly  the  question,  "If  you 
were  to  haul  four  loads  of  coal  to-day  and  three  to-morrow, 
how  many  would  that  be  ?  "  for  he  was  used  to  hauling 
coal.  In  a  similar  way  a  normal  child  who  has  been  sell- 
ing groceries,  in  reality  or  in  imagination,  may  work  prob- 
lems involving  such  things  when  he  would  fail  on  those 
concerned  with  the  sale  of  cordwood,  bricks,  or  bonds. 
The  ability  to  image  the  objects  with  which  the  problems 
-afe  concerned,  and  their  relations  in  the  transaction,  not 
only  enables  the  child  to  use  his  common  sense  in  judging 
the  correctness  of  his  answer  but  it  enables  him  to  see 
more  clearly  what  rules  will  apply  to  the  conditions  of 
the  problem. 

Some  practice  in  formulating  problems  is  also  needed. 
Children  who  have  successfully  used  a  cooking  recipe 
may  fail  in  reckoning  the  cost,  because,  for  example,  they 
do  not  reduce  cups  to  pounds  before  multiplying  by  the 
price.  The  practical  results  of  arithmetic  would  be  much 
improved  if  clearer  images  of  things  and  operations  were 
formed  before  rules  or  formulas  were  used. 


EXERCISES 

1.  Report  observations  of  children's  early  experiences  in  counting 
and  computing. 

2.  The  important  part  played  by  familiar  symbols  in  arithmetical 
processes  is  shown  by  giving  values  to  letters,  such  as  a  —  I,  b  —  2, 

[  190] 


IMAGINATION  IN  ARITHMETIC 

c  =  3,  etc.,  and  then,  using  letters  as  digits,  working  arithmetically 
the  following :  c ,  b,  d,  e, 
/_£ 

3.  How  many  inch  cubes  will  be  required  to  make  a  row  around 
the  inside  of  a  box  that  is  eight  by  ten  inches,  inside  measurement  ? 
How  many  two-inch  cubes  ?  What  is  the  difference  between  the  cost 
of  six  dozen  pencils  at  thirty  cents  a  dozen  and  a  half-dozen  pencils 
at  the  same  price  ? 

4.  Show  why  the  old  custom  of  having  a  great  deal  of  mental 
arithmetic  in  the  grades  was  or  was  not  a  good  plan.   This  is  of  course 
the  same  as  discussing  the  advisability  of  keeping  the  language  of 
arithmetic  auditory  rather  than  visual,  although  concrete  imaging  and 
judging  of  amounts  is  also  usually  more  prominent  in  mental  than  in 
written  arithmetic. 


[191] 


CHAPTER  XIX 
GEOGRAPHY  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 

Geography  as  a  stimulus  to  the  imagination.  When 
well  taught,  geography  gives  a  better  knowledge  of  one's 
own  environment  and  stimulates  the  mind  to  picture  the 
broader  world  as  it  really  is.  In  no  subject  is  the  imagina- 
tion more  necessary  and  useful.  Concerned  as  it  is  with 
the  earth  as  the  home  of  man,  geography  furnishes  a 
natural  and  varied  stimulus  to  the  imagination,  whether 
one  is  interested  in  nature  or  in  human  beings.  It  con- 
tinually presents  to  the  mind  natural  features,  plants,  ani- 
mals, and  people  different  from  those  with  which  one  is 
familiar.  The  student  must  use  images  of  things  known, 
but  must  greatly  modify  them  in  constructing  what  is 
described.  These  constructive  imaginings,  which  may  be 
entirely  in  accordance  with  fact,  furnish  rich  material  from 
which  the  creative  imagination  may  evolve  a  realm  of 
fancy,  wherein  one  travels  far  and  sees  much  that  is  strange 
and  beautiful. 

Geographical  language.  Real  objects,  pictures,  and 
word  descriptions  are  extensively  used  in  the  study  of 
geography  as  stimuli  for  the  imagination,  but  the  typical 
geographical  language  is  diagrammatic  and  is  most  used 
in  the  form  of  maps.  Various  conventional  symbols  repre- 
sent different  forms  of  land  and  water,  divisions  between 
countries,  cities,  rivers,  mountains,  and  the  elevations  of 
land,  in  their  proper  space  relations  to  each  other.  A  map, 

[192] 


GEOGRAPHY  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 

to  one  who  is  able  to  read  its  language,  tells  more  than 
could  hundreds  of  pictures,  many  pages  of  description,  or 
years  of  travel  and  observation.  So  serviceable  are  maps 
that  it  is  not  strange  that  they  have  been  extensively  used 
in  teaching  geography. 

The  advantages,  however,  have  been  offset  somewhat 
by  the  fact  that  so  much  time  has  been  spent  in  getting 
a  knowledge  of  the  names  and  space  relations  of  the  sym- 
bols of  the  map  that  there  is  frequently  little  or  no  mental 
picturing  of  the  objects  represented  by  those  symbols. 
Most  people,  when  asked  to  tell  what  image  first  comes 
to  the  mind  when  the  name  of  a  river,  lake,  mountain, 
or  city  that  they  had  never  seen  is  mentioned,  will  say 
that  it  is  the  symbol  represented  on  the  map.  So  much  is 
the  mind  occupied  in  geographical  studies  with  memoriz- 
ing symbols  and  their  relations  that  many  pupils  do  not 
get  even  a  sufficient  knowledge  of  the  language  of  geog- 
raphy to  be  able  to  read  maps  with  any  degree  of  readi- 
ness or  accuracy.  In  other  words,  they  cannot  look  at  a 
map  of  a  country  which  they  have  never  seen  and  form 
a  distinct  mental  picture  of  what  they  would  see  if  they 
visited  it. 

The  method  now  rather  extensively  followed  of  study- 
ing the  immediate  surroundings  and  expressing  the  results 
of  that  study  in  the  language  of  the  map  is  helpful  in 
enabling  pupils  to  interpret  map  language.  It  is  un- 
doubtedly true,  however,  that  some  pupils  who  begin 
geography  in  this  way  later  deal  with  map  symbols  so 
much  and  with  so  little  thought  of  what  they  represent 
that  they  lose  whatever  power  they  had  acquired  in  that 
line  and  are  unable  to  image  quickly  and  accurately  what 
the  map  describes.  To  avoid  this,  emphasis  should  be 

[193] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

placed  upon  gaining  a  knowledge  of  the  real  thing  as 
well  as  of  the  symbols.  Extensive  reading  of  travels  in 
other  lands  and  the  writing  of  imaginary  journals  are 
helpful  in  making  geography  real  and  interesting  and  the 
language  of  maps  intelligible. 

Constructive  imagination  and  geography.  In  no  sub- 
ject is  there  more  demand  for  the  use  of  the  constructive 
imagination  than  in  geography,  and  in  no  subject  is  its 
quick  and  accurate  working  so  helpful.  Various  tests  of 
school  children,  however,  indicate  that  in  a  large  propor- 
tion of  cases  the  mental  constructions  are  indefinite  and 
inaccurate,  although  many  of  them  have  considerable  vivid- 
ness. High-school  graduates  were  asked,  "How  long  will 
it  take  to  walk  across  a  bridge  over  the  Mississippi  River 
at  St.  Louis  ? "  Answers  ranged  all  the  way  from  five 
minutes  up  to  three  weeks.  Answers  as  to  how  long  it 
would  take  to  float  down  the  river  from  St.  Paul  to 
St.  Louis  or  to  climb  Pikes  Peak  were  almost  equally  varied. 

Rather  extensive  questions  indicate  that  the  figures  used 
in  geography  have  for  most  people  very  little  significance, 
and  if  they  attempt  to  image  what  the  figures  mean,  the 
results  are  very  inaccurate.  Many  of  them  are  not  even 
able  to  compare  with  approximate  correctness  the  heights 
and  distances  of  objects  in  their  own  neighborhood,  nor 
unless  they  have  been  told  can  they^  give  anything  like 
an  accurate  estimate  in  common  units  of  measure,  such 
as  feet,  miles,  and  hours.  They  evidently  need  more  prac- 
tice in  comparing  estimates  of  size  and  distance  with 
measurements  as  well  as  more  practice  in  accurately  imag- 
ing what  is  described  in  figures  or  otherwise. 

Geographical  imaging  and  reasoning.  Much  of  what 
geography  teaches  may  be  imaged,  and  in  many  cases 

['94] 


GEOGRAPHY  AND  THE  IMAGINATION 

little  besides  vivid  imaging  is  necessary  in  order  to  get 
some  of  the  advantages  which  come  from  that  study, 
especially  in  the  way  of  accumulation  of  material  with 
which  imagination  and  thought  may  work.  Such  image 
material  is  helpful  in  reasoning,  but  many  of  the  vivid 
images  formed  are  of  little  use  unless  they  are  associated 
with  knowledge  of  their  meanings  and  relation. 

If  vivid  images  are  properly  related  with  general  truths, 
the  mental  constructions  involved  in  reading  a  map  and  the 
creations  of  the  imagination  in  representing  a  journey  to  an 
unvisited  country  will  conform  closely  to  reality.  Icebergs 
will  not  be  forming  in  torrid  seas,  palms  growing  in  the 
frigid  zone,  rivers  flowing  across  mountains,  seas  draining 
into  lakes,  or  savages  engaged  in  the  arts  of  civilization. 

After  a  few  fundamental  truths  of  geography  have  been 
learned,  details  regarding  various  parts  of  the  earth  may 
be  rapidly  gained,  because  when  a  few  facts  are  given 
others  may  be  inferred,  and  it  is  not  necessary  to  spend 
any  time  in  memorizing  them.  The  specific  facts  of 
geography  are  almost  infinite  in  number,  but  if  one  has 
learned  a  few  of  them,  has  acquired  the  power  to  image 
vividly,  and  knows  some  general  truths  regarding  the 
relations  of  things  to  each  other,  it  is  possible  to  gain  in 
a  comparatively  short  time  all  the  geographical  information 
one  needs  regarding  any  particular  portion  of  the  earth. 

EXERCISES 

1.  The  terms  of  geography  according  to  which  north  is  toward 
the  top  of  the  map,  south  toward  the  bottom,  east  to  the  right,  and 
west  to  the  left,  are  frequently  not  readily  translated  into  reality,  as 
will  be  shown  by  asking  children  and  others  to  point  in  the  actual 
direction  of  cities  or  islands  with  which  they  are  familiar  as  repre- 
sented on  the  map. 

[195] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

2.  If  asked  to  represent  the  St.  Lawrence  River  as  flowing  down 
into  the  lakes,  many  will  do  so  without  questioning  the  truth  of  the 
representation. 

3.  If  you  ask  which  of  the  Great  Lakes  has  the  highest  elevation, 
an  image  of  the  map  representation  of  them  will  be  found  helpful, 
but  the  general  truth  as  to  the  flow  of  water  must  be  used  in  reason- 
ing rather  than  the  idea  that  "  down  "  on  the  map  means  lower  in 
elevation. 

4.  If  possible,  try  this  experiment  in  two  seventh-grade  or  eighth- 
grade  classes.    Have  one  class  study  a  new  country  and  then  write 
an  account  of  an  imaginary  trip  through  it ;  let  the  other  begin  with 
the  purpose  of  writing  such  an  account  and  seek  for  themselves  the 
necessary  facts.    Discuss  the  extent  of  the  knowledge  gained  by  the 
two  methods  in  the  same  length  of  time  and  also  the  training  in 
habits  of  study  that  is  given  by  each  method. 

5.  Discuss  the  comparative  value  of  storing  in  memory  geographi- 
cal facts  and  of  learning  where  to  acquire  quickly  any  that  may  be 
needed. 


[I96] 


CHAPTER  XX 

IMAGINATION  IN  HISTORY  AND  LITERATURE 

Enlargement  of  the  social  environment  through  imag- 
ination. Both  history  and  literature  are  chiefly  concerned 
with  people  and  with  what  they  have  done.  Through  his- 
tory and  literature  one  becomes  acquainted  with  a  great 
variety  of  individuals  and  is  made  familiar  with  unusual 
and  striking  events.  The  characters  differ  somewhat  from 
personal  acquaintances  and  from  those  learned  of  in  geog- 
raphy. History  for  the  most  part  presents  to  us  unusual 
people  performing  unusual  acts ;  literature  introduces  the 
most  interesting  persons  in  the  most  interesting  situations 
of  life ;  while  geography  deals  with  ordinary  individuals 
engaged  in  their  everyday  occupations,  but  who  are  inter- 
esting to  us  because  they  differ  so  much  from  the  people 
that  we  know.  The  value  of  both  history  and  literature 
depends  to  a  considerable  extent  upon  the  imagination. 
If  the  persons  and  events  described  are  pictured  so  vividly 
that  they  occupy  as  prominent  a  place  in  our  thoughts  as 
memories  of  persons  we  have  seen  and  events  we  have 
observed,  then  history  and  literature  have  done  for  us  in 
part  what  a  longer  life  and  a  wider  social  experience  would 
do.  We  meet  in  history  and  literature  people  who  are 
worth  while.  We  enter  into  the  greatest  and  the  most 
interesting  experiences  of  their  lives,  but  in  all  we  find 
the  same  fundamental  characteristics  of  human  beings 
the  world  over. 

[197] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

Historical  and  literary  ideals.  The  importance  of  the 
enlarged  social  environment  gained  through  history  and 
literature  is  clearly  indicated  by  various  studies.  People 
who  are  known  only  in  imagination  often  come  to  play 
a  larger  part  in  our  mental  lives  than  real  people.  This 
is  shown  to  some  extent  in  the  dramatic  plays  of  children, 
in  which  characters  from  history  and  literature  rather  than 
real  persons  are  represented.  It  is  shown  still  more  strik- 
ingly in  various  studies  that  have  been  made  of  children's 
ideals.  When  children  are  asked  whom  they  wish  to  be 
like,  a  great  majority  of  all  but  the  younger  ones  mention 
characters  from  history  and  literature  rather  than  from 
among  their  personal  acquaintances.  Historical  and  liter- 
ary characters  are  especially  suited  for  serving  as  ideals 
because  only  their  most  striking  and  interesting  charac- 
teristics are  shown  in  outline,  and  details  may  be  filled  in 
to  harmonize  with  them,  while  characters  in  real  life  are 
at  times  commonplace  or  unattractive.  Personal  acquaint- 
ances observed  in  various  aspects  cannot  stimulate  the 
imagination  as  do  the  men  and  women  of  history  or 
literature,  of  whom  we  know  only  a  few  striking  facts. 

Dramatics  in  history  and  literature.  The  child's  natural 
method  of  becoming  acquainted  with  people  is  to  do  as 
they  do  and  find  out  how  it  feels  to  perform  such  actions. 
He  also  lives  over  again  events  which  he  has  observed 
through  dramatic  representations  of  them.  Words,  pic- 
tures, and  diagrams  all  have  their  place  as  stimuli  to  the 
imagination  in  studying  history  and  literature,  but  they 
are  not  nearly  so  effective  as  dramatic  action,  especially 
when  the  pupil  takes  part  in  the  drama  which  he  has  him- 
self planned-  in  part  in  accordance  with  his  interpretation 
of  events  and  characters.  These  dramatic  representations 

[198] 


IMAGINATION  IN  HISTORY  AND  LITERATURE 

may  be  very  simple  and  sketchy  for  younger  pupils, 
and  more  elaborate,  accurate,  and  consistent  in  detail  for 
older  ones. 

Dramatics  as  an  aid  in  studying  history  and  literature 
may  be  used  not  only  in  the  more  usual  forms  of  costum- 
ing and  "  acting  of  plays  "  but  also  by  assuming  the  mental 
characteristics  of  great  men  and  performing  similar  deeds. 
Probably  no  high-school  pupils  ever  obtained  a  more  com- 
plete knowledge  of  men  and  events  of  the  early  days  of 
our  national  history  than  did  a  class  which  organized  as 
the  First  National  Congress.  Each  pupil  assumed  the 
character  of  some  prominent  statesman,  introducing  bills 
and  making  arguments  as  his  original  had  done.  Such 
dramatic  representation  stimulates  the  imagination  but  at 
the  same  time  brings  it  under  the  rigid  control  of  facts 
and  probabilities. 

Imitation  may  greatly  help  in  literary  expression  of 
imaginative  activity.  Pupils  may  be  asked  after  reading 
yEsop's  Fables  to  write  similar  ones  showing  that  "  Haste 
makes  waste,"  or  that  "  Pride  goeth  before  a  fall,"  etc. 
Again,  pupils  who  have  read  R.  H.  Davis's  "Van  Bibber 
Stories,"  Longfellow's  "Tales  of  a  Wayside  Inn,"  or 
other  distinctive  types  of  literature,  may  write  stories  simi- 
lar in  style  but  varying  in  content. 

Not  only  may  prose  be  imitated  but  also  poetry.  Songs 
also  may  be  written  and  the  music  for  them  composed, 
or  stories  may  be  illustrated  by  drawings.  Such  construc- 
tive and  creative  work  is  often  done  exceedingly  well  by 
pupils  who  have  previously  shown  little  interest  in  litera- 
ture. After  successful  effort  of  his  own  a  child  or  youth 
is  nearly  always  more  appreciative  of  what  others  have 
done. 

[199] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

Ilhistrating  and  writing  as  a  stimulus  to  the  imagina- 
tion. Another  method  of  stimulating  the  imagination  to 
effective  work  in  studying  history  and  literature  is  to  have 
pupils  illustrate  by  drawings  the  descriptions  which  they 
have  read  or  to  have  them  write  accounts  of  events,  per- 
sons, or  organizations  with  which  they  are  familiar.  They 
will  thus  get  some  practice  in  selecting  historical  and 
literary  material  and  in  finding  words  which  will  properly 
express  the  desired  thought.  This  will  greatly  add  to 
their  appreciation  of  what  they  read  and  stimulate  them  to 
exercise  their  imagination  in  reading  between  the  lines. 
It  is  frequently  of  advantage  for  pupils  to  attempt  to  de- 
scribe familiar  incidents  in  imitation  of  model  descriptions 
of  other  events  from  history  or  literature.  It  is  sometimes 
well  to  have  the  same  event  described  from  a  historical 
and  then  from  a  literary  standpoint ;  the  purpose  in  the 
one  case  being  to  select  important  facts  and  state  them 
accurately,  and  in  the  other  to  select  interesting  charac- 
ters and  happenings  and  present  them  in  a  vivid  and 
entertaining  way  by  adding  appropriate  details. 

Literary  expression  and  imagination.  Literature, 
especially  poetry,  abounds  in  figures  of  speech  which  are 
always  stimulating  to  the  imagination  and  suited  to  the 
production  of  vivid  images  and  appropriate  feeling.  In 
general,  these  figures  of  speech  suggest  similarities  or 
analogies  connecting  various  objects  not  ordinarily  asso- 
ciated, or  they  are  animistic,  intimating  that  things  have 
human  qualities.  In  good  literature  such  figurative  lan- 
guage stimulates  the  mind  to  form  artistic  or  humorous 
pictures.  The  significance  of  such  expressions  may  be 
greatly  increased  by  asking  pupils  to  invent  others  in 
connection  with  common  objects  and  incidents.  Surprising 

[  200] 


IMAGINATION  IN  HISTORY  AND  LITERATURE 

ability  may  be  shown  and  developed  in  this  way  even  in 
small  pupils.  Such  questions  as  the  following  are  quite  sure 
to  stimulate  the  imagination  and  will  frequently  call  forth 
artistic  literary  expressions.  "  If  a  violet  became  a  little 
girl,  what  sort  of  girl  would  she  be  ?  "  "  If  a  rabbit  became 
a  little  boy,  what  sort  of  boy  would  he  be  ? " 

In  the  case  of  older  pupils  such  questions  as  the  follow- 
ing may  be  used  :  "  What  is  happiness  like  ?  "  "  What  is 
sorrow  like  ? "  "To  what  may  youth  be  compared,  or  age ? " 
"  To  what  may  life  be  compared  ?  "  "  How  would  you  per- 
sonify industry  or  ingenuity  ?  "  In  giving  such  questions 
it  may  be  well  to  present  several  model  comparisons  to 
start  the  children  to  thinking,  but  the  giving  of  answers 
which  vary  from  the  model  should  be  encouraged. 

A  primary  teacher,  seeking  to  arouse  the  imagination 
and  call  forth  poetic  and  pleasing  expressions,  asked  her 
primary  children  to  tell  what  certain  phrases  made  them 
see  or  think.  Some  of  the  best  answers  follow.  "  Down 
from  the  clouds :  Once  I  saw,  after  a  rain,  when  I  looked 
out  of  a  window,  little  paths  of  light  coming  down  from 
the  clouds."  "  Softest  light:  One  night  there  was  a  ring 
around  the  moon,  and  it  looked  like  a  soft  light."  "Stars: 
Friday  night  the  sky  was  full  of  stars ;  they  looked  like 
dots  of  gold  sprinkled  over  the  sky."  "  Gleamed  red  with 
firelight  through  the  leaves:  These  words  make  me  think 
of  last  fall  in  a  neighbor's  yard,  when  the  maple  leaves 
were  turning  yellow  and  the  veins  of  the  leaves  looked 
like  bars  of  gold."  "A  pleasant  day :  A  pleasant  day  is 
like  a  little  girl  with  a  pleasant  face." 

In  response  to  the  question,  "  If  a  lily  became  a  person, 
what  sort  of  person  would  it  be  ?  "  one  answer  was,  "  A 
baby  is  like  a  lily  because  it  is  pure  and  white  and  good." 

[201] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

To  a  similar  question  regarding  a  mouse  the  following 
answer  was  given  :  "A  person  like  a  mouse  would  be  a 
little  boy  who  was  very  still.  He  would  steal  things  to 
eat  and  would  not  be  easy  to  catch." 

The  following  are  some  of  the  answers  given  by  normal 
students  to  similar  questions : 

I  should  imagine  that  if  a  mouse  became  a  man  he  would  be 
a  short,  small,  sleek-looking  man  with  black  hair  combed  back 
smoothly  and  carefully,  a  black  moustache,  and  glasses.  I  think 
he  would  wear  a  black  suit  and  perhaps  carry  a  cane.  I  think 
he  would  be  somewhat  dudish  in  appearance  and  would  be 
quiet  and  sly  in  his  actions. 

I  should  imagine  a  violet,  if  changed  to  a  person,  would  be  a 
sweet-faced  young  lady  with  dreamy  blue  eyes  and  light  hair. 
She  would  dress  in  some  soft  white  material  and  perhaps  wear 
a  bunch  of  violets  at  her  belt.  I  think  she  would  have  a 
beautiful  disposition. 

If  a  mouse  became  a  person  he  would  be  a  short  fat  person 
with  a  very  full  neck,  wearing  a  high  collar.  He  would  carry  his 
chin  high  in  the  air.  A  pair  of  glasses  would  be  placed  on  his 
nose.  He  would  be  dressed  in  a  black  dress-suit  coat  and  striped 
pants,  carrying  a  cane.  His  ankles  would  be  rather  small  and 
his  feet  large,  with  patent-leather  shoes. 

If  a  violet  became  a  person  it  would  be  a  little  girl  with  a 
beautiful  face  and  lovely  hair.  Her  dress  would  be  white  with 
scalloped  flounces  trimmed  with  green. 

In  imagining  how  a  mouse  would  look  if  he  were  a  person, 
I  think  he  would  be  a  very  neat,  sleek-looking  man,  and  bright. 
His  eyes  would  be  a  very  dark  brown,  his  teeth  pearly  white 
and  sharp.  His  hair  would  be  combed  very  neatly,  never  a  hair 
out  of  place,  his  clothes  of  the  neatest  cut  in  gray. 

As  for  a  violet's  being  a  person,  I  think  she  would  make  a  very 
quiet,  modest,  shy  young  lady  with  a  very  neat  and  trim  blue  dress. 

[  2O2  ] 


IMAGINATION  IN  HISTORY  AND  LITERATURE 

EXERCISES 

1.  Which  is  more  important,  that  a  child  should  learn  many  facts 
and  dates  in  history  or  that  he  should  form  many  vivid  images  of 
persons  and  events  ?   Why  ? 

2.  To  what  extent  were  your  ideals  in  youth  derived  from  persons 
of  whom  you  read  and  to  what  extent  from  personal  acquaintances  ? 
Do  bad  characters  ever  have  any  influence  upon  the  formation  of 
good  ideals?    Illustrate. 

3.  What  is  the  comparative  value  to  children  and  young  people 
of  being  carefully  trained  in  presenting  historical  events  dramatically 
and  of   presenting   crudely,  according   to  their   own  ideas,  many 
incidents  ? 

4.  Try  some  experiments  in  having  pupils  write  imitations  of 
literary  selections  and  report  the  results. 

5.  Try  also  the  experiment  of  having  various  things  personified 
or  special  phrases  made  concrete. 


[203] 


CHAPTER  XXI 

IMAGINATION  IN  NATURE  STUDY  AND  SCIENCE 

Imagination  and  observation.  Teachers  of  small  chil- 
dren, who  have  encouraged  nature  study,  especially  the 
study  of  birds,  have  been  impressed  with  the  fact  that 
many  children  possess  better  powers  of  imagination  than 
of  observation.  Better,  as  used  here,  should  be  under- 
stood to  mean  "freer"  rather  than  "more  accurate."  It  is 
frequently  much  easier  for  a  child  to  imagine  birds  than  it 
is  to  find  them,  and  to  guess  how  they  look  than  to  observe 
accurately  when  there  is  little  time  or  an  obstructed  view. 
Each  child  is  anxious  to  report  as  many  facts  as  any 
of  the  other  children,  and  if  the  facts  reported  excite 
wonder  and  admiration,  his  imagination  is  stimulated  to 
supply  others  equally  wonderful. 

Leaves,  flowers,  and  insects,  which  can  be  examined 
at  leisure  and  of  which  samples  can  be  brought  to  verify 
the  reports  of  what  has  been  seen,  may  be  observed  with 
considerable  accuracy,  after  a  little  training,  by  even  small 
children.  Good  pictures  of  birds  may  be  a  great  help  in 
promoting  accurate  observation.  When  certain  birds  are 
reported  as  having  been  seen  and  are  described  as  they 
are  represented  in  books,  the  genuineness  of  the  observa- 
tion may  be  determined  by  questioning  the  child  as  to 
where  the  bird  was  seen  and  what  it  was  doing.  A  cor- 
rect image  of  how  the  bird  looks  is  an  aid  in  discovering 
and  seeing  the  characteristics  of  that  bird,  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  if  careful  observation  and  verification  are  not 

[204] 


IMAGINATION  IN  NATURE  STUDY  AND  SCIENCE 

insisted  upon,  the  child  may  wrongly  identify  birds  as 
being  of  the  species  for  which  he  is  looking  or  of  which 
he  has  recently  learned. 

Artistic  and  poetic  stiidy.  Objects  of  nature  are  some- 
times studied,  not  so  much  to  gain  accurate  knowledge 
as  to  observe  their  beauty  or  their  interesting  peculiari- 
ties. In  poetry  and  in  other  literature  their  appearance 
and  movements  are  frequently  compared  to  those  of  per- 
sons. Children  are  ready  to  appreciate  such  analogies  and 
are  easily  led  to  take  an  animistic  view  of  almost  any- 
thing. Good  literature  concerned  with  objects  of  nature 
and  its  seasonal  phenomena  is  abundant,  and  some  of  it 
is  suitable  to  children  and  may  help  to  make  their  study 
of  nature  much  more  interesting,  without  in  any  way  inter- 
fering with  its  accuracy.  If  the  facts  observed  and  de- 
scribed are  essentially  correct,  there  is  no  harm  in  giving 
them  interpretations  more  or  less  fanciful  and  poetic. 
Such  interpretations  should  be  treated  in  a  light  and  play- 
ful way  rather  than  in  a  serious  and  literal  manner.  They 
will  not  then  come  into  serious  conflict  with  practical  and 
scientific  ideas  acquired  later. 

Practical  nature  study.  Many  careful  studies  of  the 
interests  of  children  reveal  the  fact  that  children  are  usu- 
ally interested  primarily  in  what  things  can  do  or  what 
may  be  done  with  them.  This  truth  is  now  being  recog- 
nized in  nature  study,  and  children  are  encouraged  to  find 
out  whether  the  plants  and  animals  they  have  opportunity 
to  observe  are  useful  or  harmful.  They  make  a  thorough 
study  of  plants  of  useful  kinds  in  order  that  they  may 
properly  care  for  them.  They  learn  of  the  usefulness  or 
harmfulness  of  animals  and  insects,  not  simply  to  them- 
selves but  to  the  community.  They  readily  appreciate  the 

[205] 


IMAGINATION  AND  ITS  PLACE  IN  EDUCATION 

injuries  that  may  be  caused  by  some  of  the  beautiful  in- 
sects and  the  good  done  by  the  homely  toad,  and  that  birds 
and  other  creatures  may  be  useful  as  well  as  beautiful. 

It  is  often  more  difficult  to  harmonize  the  sentiments 
arising  from  animistic  views  of  nature,  especially  of  ani- 
mals, with  the  practical  need  demanding  their  destruction. 
The  truth  that  death  is  not  necessarily  painful  is  of  con- 
siderable assistance  in  explaining  what  may  or  may  not  be 
done  to  living  things. 

Scientific  nature  study.  The  kinds  of  nature  study 
already  described,  if  properly  carried  on,  do  not  neces- 
sarily interfere  with  scientific  nature  study  but  may  be  a 
good  preparation  for  it  by  rilling  the  child's  mind  with 
images  which,  when  they  are  associated  with  the  appro- 
priate general  truths,  will  enable  him  to  classify,  observe, 
and  interpret  his  observations.  Indeed,  the  earlier  study 
of  nature  may  really  be,  to  a  considerable  extent,  scien- 
tific. When  a  child  is  interested  he  can  learn  scientific 
names  and  the  correct  terms  to  be  applied  to  various 
phenomena  as  readily  as  he  can  the  fanciful  and  babyish 
expressions  sometimes  used.  In  learning  such  terms  and 
acquiring  a  correct  idea  of  their  significance  he  should 
not  be  given  long  descriptions  or  elaborate  definitions,  but 
the  terms  should  be  closely  associated  with  the  things 
which  he  is  observing  in  such  a  way  that  he  will  perceive 
something  of  their  significance.  With  further  observation 
and  use  of  the  terms  he  will  gain  a  more  complete  idea 
of  their  meaning,  and  later,  if  it  is  thought  desirable, 
exact  definitions  may  be  formulated. 

In  turning  to  the  more  scientific  study  of  nature  it  is 
not  necessary  to  abandon  the  practical.  The  laws  of  phys- 
ics and  chemistry  may  be  studied  in  connection  with 

[206] 


IMAGINATION  IN  NATURE  STUDY  AND  SCIENCE 

practical  affairs,  such  as  the  heating  and  ventilating  of 
houses  and  the  cooking  and  preserving  of  foods.  Such 
training  enables  one  to  image  many  concrete  situations 
in  which  these  laws  are  manifested  and  helps  to  make 
them  clearer  and  more  significant.  Children  should  not 
be  taught  to  image  things  merely  as  others  have  imaged 
them,  but  what  others  have  done  should  be  used  in  a  play- 
ful and  suggestive  way  to  stimulate  the  child's  own  imag- 
ination. The  important  thing  in  nature  study  is  that  the 
child  shall  have  much  sensory  experience  of  the  objects 
and  phenomena  of  nature.  The  classification  of  these 
may  come  later  in  the  study  of  science. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Report  instances  in  which  the  observations  of  school  children 
have  been  colored  by  the  imagination  and  discuss  how  they  may  be 
led  to  observe  more  accurately. 

2.  Try  to  draw  from  children  their  own  animistic  interpretations 
of  nature  and  see  if  you  cannot  find  some  that  are  worthy  of  poets 
and  ancient  myth  makers. 

3.  Children  who  have  the  experience  of  caring  for  plants  and  pets 
and  of  studying  and  making  collections  of  objects  of  nature  may  have 
their  imagination  stirred  by  attempts  to  compute  the  injury  done  by 
one  fly  or  the  good  done  by  one  bird,  as  well  as  by  the  expression  of 
thoughts  and  sentiments  about  pets  and  flowers. 

4.  Select  a  lesson  as  given  in  some  nature-study  book  and  criti- 
cize it  from  the  point  of  view  of  its  truth  and  its  value  as  a  stimulus 
or  in  directing  the  imagination. 


[  2°7  ] 


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^-N 


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